Mending Hearts
by Meiko Atsushi
Summary: Giotto and his guardians weren't impressed when 8 kids that in which Talbot claims that are their descendants appear. With each kid holding a hurtful secret, Giotto and his Famiglia needs to stand up against the cause of their pain - Byakuran. However, is there more?
1. Prologue

"_**I was abused by my foster parents, and then abused at the orphanage again."**_

"… _**My father threw me away. I live in the streets."**_

"_**My parents were murdered last year. Now I live in the orphanage with Tsuna."**_

"_**My sister died of an unknown disease a few years ago, and my family started falling apart, rotting away as whole. I don't know who to rely on anymore."**_

"_**I was bought from the slave trading center by a bunch of scientists from the mafia. They tested out tons of chemicals on me. I hate the mafia."**_

"_**I don't know who my parents are. When I woke up, I was laying in the middle of the road."**_

"_**My organs became unusable because I got into a car accident a few years ago. Now my parents don't know what to do, when the doctors say I don't have much to live."**_

"_**My parents sold me to a drunk man who needed a boy to 'play' with."**_

**Giotto and his guardians have no idea what to do when suddenly 8 kids from the future appear in their mansion, each from a different place, from a different family, and with different situations. When they're not able to return, Giotto and his guardians decide to take them into the family… but what exactly is children's story?**

**A similar story to my previous one, "Let Me Heal You", but with a kind of different plot line. Updated every two weeks.**

"**Mending Hearts", starting from December, next Saturday.**


	2. Chapter 1

**Hey guys. New story. Firstly, thanks for all your support in the prologue. Reply to a few of you guy's reviews – um, yeah, in this story, I wouldn't be using any OCs except maybe for the villains. I really have no choice for them. And yeah.**

**These are the overall ages:**

**Tsuna – 8 Giotto – 22**

**Gokudera – 10 G – 22**

**Yamamoto – 10 Asari – 22**

**Ryohei – 12 Knuckle – 24**

**Kyoya – 12 Alaude – 25**

**Mukuro – 12 Daemon – 25**

**Chrome – 11 Lampo – 20**

**Lambo – 7**

**I decided to make Lambo a little more mature and older, as that is far more easier to manage. Enjoy.**

**Chapter 1**

"The skies are the color of a clear blue abyss that shows no end, the birds fly around chirping freely, as if to sing about their journeys from here to the seas and sandy shores, the wet green grass dances in the wind, and I-"

"Shut up and do your _work._"

The smile that was once plastered all over the gravity-defying blonde's face diminished, leaving a sad, depressing pout as he held his pen up again and swiftly signed his signature on each paper as he flipped the smooth white pages one at a time, throwing the completed sheets tiredly to another side, stacking them on another separate pile.

"G, how long do I need to do this again?" The blonde groaned, as his red (or as some people might say, magenta or dark _**pink**_) haired friend (in which, it quite did look like an octopus like his other friends would say) glanced up at him, and then gathered his attention back to the Sunday paper he was reading. When the blonde – now namely, Giotto Ieyasu Sawada, but the shortened version being just plain Giotto – gave him a pleading look, G, the red head, let out a heavy sigh as he put his papers back down.

"Just 2 more hours Giotto. How hard was two more hours again?" G asked rhetorically, as Giotto whined something about how he had a bunch of useless friends who never – well, not really – got paperwork whether they messed up the kitchen or broke through the bathroom. It was always Giotto who had to endure with the pain – and to be honest, none of his friends actually cared. Yeah, "friends".

"Seriously, if Alaude and Daemon just never fought for one whole week, then I might really allow them to not go on a mission or anything related to work for one whole month. Like, half of the paperwork over here," Giotto pointed at his three and a half stacks of papers, "Are all because of what they destroyed during their missions, or even while they were at the mansion."

"Nothing's new about that, is it? You should be thankful that the rest of us usually just sit around and do nothing. We do argue time to time, but at least ours is done verbally and concluded verbally. Theirs is just… they do everything… _physically._" G nodded in agreement, as Giotto let out a loud groan of frustration, is pen missing G's head by a centimeter as it flew in mid air. Some stacks of papers fell and made a pile of mess beneath his desk at the impact, as G crinkled his nose and moved his feet away to keep a distance with the pile.

"WHY DO I NEED TO-"

"Giotto." The door slid open, revealing another blonde haired man – just that this time it was platinum blonde, not the golden shade of blonde that Giotto possessed. The man threw another stack of papers tied together with string **(I don't think there were any staplers there…) **and Giotto just stared at the stack with a crestfallen expression, wondering if it was another pile of papers he needed to sign. The platinum blonde, seeing Giotto's expression, frowned.

"It's the information reports you told me to gather on the _Corvino_* Famiglia." Alaude – the platinum blonde – said in his usual stiff voice, his eyes cold as if it contained of no sort of emotions. Giotto blinked, trying to remember what he told Alaude to do. Finally, he flipped through the papers, reminding himself that he actually did other jobs than just signing sheets all day.

"Good job Alaude. Thank you for your neatly done work – as usual." Giotto nodded, putting the stack on a separate section of his desk. Alaude just turned away and exited the room, getting ready to go back to his office – which was of course, his CEDEF quarters. Giotto sighed lightly, as G stared at the leftover pile on the left.

"When are you going to finish those?"

Giotto glanced at the pile, and soon averted his eyes from the papers, as he didn't even want to see anything white with black ink anymore. "Some time around today evening or tomorrow morning. It needs to handed in by… Tuesday, right? Then I don't need to worry about it just yet." Giotto stretched his arms, cracking his knuckles a bit as he leaned back down on his wooden armchair.

"By the way, when is Daemon coming back from his mission? Unlike Alaude, Daemon has a tendency of being way too overconfident in completing his missions." Giotto sighed, massaging his temples, as G flipped through his leather-cover notebook, scanning each page.

"He should be coming back in about 3 days. He's far off in Rome right now, so…" G trailed off, as Giotto frowned.

"Rome? I gave him the permission to go to _Rome? _At a time like this… Oh god. I just hope he doesn't create trouble with any of the soldiers or civilians there in the area." Giotto murmured and, G shrugged.

"You just sent him to Rome for some kind of research and gathering information on a new enemy Famiglia. I'm sure he wouldn't create trouble."

"That's right… I'm sure the melon isn't that stupid…" A lazy voice said as he entered the office. G crinkled his nose at the appearance of the unwelcomed new comer, and Giotto smiled.

"Welcome back, Lampo. How was your mission?"

"Horrible. It was successful, of course, because ore-sama was the one who was doing it, but why am I always the one that gets the missions with all the aggressive and battle-essential material? I lost track how many times I needed to use my shield for body and food protection." Lampo grumbled, as Giotto nodded.

"You do know that I would love to give those types of missions to Daemon and Alaude, as they are the bloodthirsty ones, but they are _too_ bloodthirsty. They obviously overdo it, damaging town property and being a hindrance in the villagers' daily routine. All I can do for now is let them gather information. I know that you are the expert at this Lampo, but they aren't too bad themselves. And besides, you can fight well, so what is the problem?" Giotto tilted his head to the side, as Lampo just grunted, not saying any more.

"Giotto, it's raining outside." G pointed at the window, and Giotto frowned.

"The sky was clear just a few minutes ago."

"Well, apparently it's now-"

_**POOF!**_

Lampo coughed as pink, fluffy smoke filled the room. Giotto scowled as he waved the smoke out of the way. G shouted a curse, saying something about why the smoke needed to be pink out of all colors it could be. Asari came up to the office, wondering what was happening, only to be overwhelmed by a puff of pink smoke in his face.

"Just what in the world is-" G stopped, as he saw a figure sitting down on the ground, as the pink smoke started to fade. "Who are you." He demanded, pointing his gun at the shadowy outline of the person in front of them. As the smoke cleared, Giotto and his guardians were confused, as they stared at the unknown intruder.

"It's… a kid." Asari stated, as G slowly dropped his gun. The right hand man glanced at Giotto, not knowing what to say. "I wonder how he got here."

The said kid had slightly curly black hair, his eyes bright green and his skin slightly tanned at smudged with dirt. He was wearing a plain white shirt that seemed a little too big for him, and red pants that was now slightly faded, making it look like it was pink. He was barefooted, and his body was covered in cuts, dust, while his hands were half spotted with blisters.

"He… looks like someone I know." Asari commented, and Giotto nodded. Then he glanced at Lampo, and the glanced back at the kid. "Like Lampo."

"That kid doesn't look like ore-sama-"

"Who are you people?" the boy glared up at them. "You people aren't from my area. I never seen people like you in Shitamachi… **(According to my research, now one out of six people in Japan are suffering from poverty, and those people all live in different places in Japan. One place was the deserted alleys in Shitamachi, or in someplace similar – not comfortable places. Shitamachi is near the northern region of Tokyo, near Chiba.) **No… where… where am I? Furthermore, why am I in a house? I am pretty sure I was outside just a few seconds ago…" the boy grumbled.

_He's Japanese… but what is he talking about? Outside? _Giotto frowned. The boy then glared at them again.

"What did you people do to me?" he demanded, as a animated vein popped up on G's forehead.

"What makes you think we did something you, huh? What kind of Japanese are speaking in the first place? It's so different of that flute freak's – and why in the fucking world are you so dirty?! Do you bathe, lad?" the male bombarded the boy with numerous questions, as Lambo backed away a little in suspicion and fear.

"I am speaking normal Japanese, you idiot, and I do bathe – just not often. Now, answer _my _question. Who are you people? What's with those clothes, and why is this place's interior so… ancient? Who's house is still made out of this kind of wood nowadays? And you don't- fucking Lord, don't you have lamps or electricity here? No air conditioner?" the boy cussed, and Giotto frowned at the language. He wondered if the boy was using those words with knowing the meaning. And what in the world were lamps, electricity, and air conditioning? And of course all houses were made out of wood – and a little bit of cement – what could it be made out of?

"We have no idea what you're talking about, but to answer one of your questions, my name is Giotto, the man over there is G, and the person that looks kind of like you is Lampo, and finally that Japanese man is Asari. What's your name?"

The boy looked hesitant, but hunched his shoulders up and looked down, as he mumbled something under his breath. "Lambo."

"Just that?" G scowled. "And why does your name need to be so similar to our bratty lightning guardian over here?" Lambo looked up at him, and shrugged.

"Just that. And besides, it was the name that Hayato-nii gave to me, because originally I was just nameless. I don't need a last name or anything." Lambo replied, as Giotto, G, Asari, and Lampo glanced at eachother, all of them confused in their very own ways.

"Well, who's this Hayato, then?" Giotto questioned, and Lambo, once again looked hesitant to say anything more. He seemed to debating with himself for a while, his mind pondering from one end to another, wondering whether he was really supposed to trust the unknown adults. Lambo was never good with adults. He hated them. They were so irresponsible, so ignorant, and so manipulative…

"He's… he's my brother of sorts. We're not related through blood though. He was the one who picked me up on the streets. He taught me how to read, write, talk… and fight. And do a lot of other stuff that's useful for survival. Like…" Lambo went through his pockets, reaching for something that was a shape of an oval. "This."

"A… _grenade?_" G scowled, raising his left brow. Lambo nodded.

"If I throw it, then it explodes a little after. It's good to run right after you throw it." Lambo replied, putting it back into his pocket.

"Ok, how old is this Hayato again?" Asari questioned, his look getting a little more serious than before. The Japanese swordsman didn't really approve of kids holding such dangerous materials in such a age – even if it was for sakes of protection.

Lambo held out both of his hands, and seemed to be counting for a while. Then finally when he got the answer, he put out both his hands spread out in front of him. "Hayato-nii is ten. He's turning eleven in… in… I think about 4 months." Lambo said, and G slapped his forehead.

"10. A 10 year old holding around grenades or whatever in that range… something is fucking wrong there. And he told you how to _cuss_? I am really starting to wonder what this Hayato kid looks like." G grunted, and Lambo stared at him for a while.

"Hayato-nii looks like you. Just that he has silver hair and his eyes are green. A little darker than mine though. And Hayato-nii puts on the same expression as you do, too." Lambo said, and Lampo, Asari, and Giotto all instantly imagined a 10 year old G, without the tattoo, with silver hair, green eyes, and the same expression. A chill ran down their spine. Another cussing G, mini-version, would probably be horrible. A cussing nightmare.

"But Lambo-" before Giotto could ask another question, someone knocked on the door. Giotto glanced at it and frowned. "Come in."

Soon, the door creaked open, revealing a certain boxing priest with a stack of papers as well. "I came back Giotto. Nice to see you guys all in here – because I couldn't see Alaude or any of you anywhere. And Daemon didn't come back from his mission, so that's that. But… who's that kid? Looks like… Lampo." Knuckle, the priest, paused. "Is that your son Lambo? Please don't say you got a woman pregnant and then had this child out of wedlock-"

"Knuckle, ore-sama wouldn't so casually fuck a girl when I am like 12. I am 19 this year. Obviously that boy is about 7 or younger. It doesn't make sense." Lampo grunted, and Knuckle blinked, then nodded.

"Well, if so, then that is good to hear. If he really were your son, then it would be the same thing as not committing something for God's glory. Rather, it would be performing an action of huge sin." Knuckle paused. "As Romans verse-"

"Ok, ok, got it, no bible references please." Lampo groaned, covering his ears.

"But anyways, Lambo, what-"

_**POOF!**_

"I think one pink explosion in one day is more than enough." G grumbled, and Giotto gagged as he breathed in the sweet scented smoke. "Why does it smell like some woman's perfume anyways? And it tastes bitter."

"So, is this like a new way we are going to use our dying will flames or something?" Knuckle asked, clueless about what was going on – or about what was going to happen.

Another shadowy figure stood in the middle of the room. Lambo stared at it, and then took a few steps back, recognizing that it wasn't someone he knew of. The smoke cleared, revealing another boy – this one taller than Lambo. He had indigo-colored hair, one of his eyes red and the latter blue. His skin was pale, and he was wearing a navy green army jacket, which not to mention, was tattered with blood – and wearing a white jacket and the same navy green army pants, which was torn a little here and there. He had bruises on his hands and parts of his face, and his lips were red and slightly ripped at the edges.

"Now that I notice… where are these kids getting all these wounds?" G whispered to Giotto, who shrugged. Knuckle wondered if he was supposed to help the kids, who now that he noticed had severe wounds all over their bodies. He tried to approach Lambo first, but Lambo just slapped the hand away.

"Kufufu… I wonder if this is the part of the new experiment they're trying out on me…" the boy said in a bitter tone, and Giotto raised his eyebrows as he heard the boy's words. "But based on the overall interior of this mansion…" He glanced around the old-fashioned room. "It seems quite ancient." He concluded, and Giotto and G glanced at eachother. It was similar to what Lambo said earlier – that the mansion was made in a way that nobody did anymore.

"Um, mind us asking… who the fuck are you?" G questioned, and Mukuro frowned. He wasn't so fond of the usage of language the older male was using, but Mukuro decided that it would be better if… well, if he could trade some information. It didn't look anywhere near the laboratory he was just staying in, after all.

"Not to mention, he looks like Daemon. First Lampo, and now Daemon?" Asari whispered, as Giotto nodded. He knew it was rather personal and offensive, but he really didn't like the fact that there was a kid who looked just like Daemon, minus the fruit shaped hairstyle that somewhat differed from Daemon's. _So there are various versions of fruit shaped hairstyles… very interesting. _

"Rokudo Mukuro. And you are?" Mukuro chuckled – even the chuckle was so similar as Daemon's that it was seriously starting to creep Giotto and his guardians out. "And it would be helpful if you tell me, which part in Japan am I in? Or which province, maybe?"

Giotto, G, Asari, Lampo, and Knuckle all glanced at eachother, exchanging confused looks. "This isn't Japan." Lampo finally said after a while. "It's Sicily. You know, Italy? You're in Italy."

Mukuro's eyes widened an inch, as if he was trying to process the information he had just received from a bunch of strangers. _Italy… the mafia… the… Estraneo… but why… _then Mukuro paused, as he glanced at Lambo, who was just sitting down in the corner now. _His clothes… he's from my time. But their clothes… _Mukuro glanced at G, Giotto, Asari, Knuckle, and Lampo. Though G and Lampo's clothing were quite similar to the one's they wore nowadays (as the said guardians only wore a white button down shirt and black or navy blue pants), Giotto, Asari, and Knuckle's clothing were rather… well, unusual. (Even though Knuckle was wearing a robe of a priest, it was still a little old-fashioned.) _Wait, don't say…_ Mukuro turned towards the windows that were half-covered by the silk curtains. He ran towards them and pushed the curtains to the side and stared at the street that was in front of the mansion, where people were milling around, caring about their own business. Mukuro clutched the wooden frames, gritting his teeth. He finally turned back, where Lambo, and all the other adults were staring right back at him with confused expressions. Mukuro regained his cool composure and opened his mouth.

"Mind me asking," Mukuro started, his tone obscure but hopeful. "What's the date today? Including the year?" He asked, and Giotto and his guardians exchanged suspicious glances at one another. Lambo frowned up at Mukuro, as if he was stupid. But Mukuro needed to know the answer.

"May 9th." Knuckle replied. "16XX." Now Lambo whipped his head back at Knuckle, his eyes disbelieving and looking terribly confused. The boy stared back up at Mukuro, who stared back at him. Mukuro, this time, asked Lambo.

"What's the date today?" Lambo didn't reply for a while, but then opened his mouth again.

"May 9th. 20XX." **(I do know that in the anime, the time period is like 19XX, but hey – it's 2014. It's just easier to put it like that.) **This time it was the adults' turn to stare at Lambo and Mukuro with startled expressions. Mukuro looked up and stared back at them.

"If I saw the calendar today properly," Mukuro started, "then today _is _supposed to be May 9th, 20XX." Then he paused. "But now you people are saying that it's 16XX. Which only means-"

"Wait, wait, _wait._ Stop the fuck right there. Now are you trying to say boy, that you're from the future of 400 years? That you did some kind of impossible time traveling magic trick? And are we supposed to believe that?" G growled fiercely, but Mukuro didn't even blink.

"Then what other theory do you have?"

"That you two are both talking nonsense. Like, when I mean nonsense, I mean nonsense." G responded, sounding slightly annoyed. Mukuro sighed heavily. He really wished he had some other physical evidence or proof that he- no that they, were from the future, other than just words.

"Then let me ask, since most of you guys seem to know Japanese here, though well… it's supposed to be Italy. Do you know where Tokyo is?" the indigo haired boy asked, and Asari tilted his head to the side. As far as he knew, there was no city, province, or area that he knew of named Tokyo in his home country.

"Of course you wouldn't – since Japan's capital wasn't established yet in this time as Tokyo. If I remember… then Japan in the 1600s are in their Edo period – also known as the Tokugawa period, because it was ruled by the Tokugawa family line, and unified by Tokugawa Ieyasu, after the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600." **(It's the power of Google search. And I don't really have a good explanation for Mukuro being able to know so much of Japanese history… oh well, let's just say he's a genius.) **

"Ok, I seriously have no idea what he's talking about." G grumbled, and Mukuro ignored him.

Lambo, who was just listening to this, finally decided to join in. "Do you know what this is?" He took out a small flashlight that still had some batteries running inside. Mukuro glanced at it, then finally mentally let out a sigh of relief, glad that there actually was a sort of evidence. Giotto and his guardians stared at the material, having no idea what it could be.

"It doesn't look delicious." Lampo grumbled, and G just punched him on the head.

"It's called a flashlight." Mukuro said. "If you turn on the switch that is attached to the side of it," Mukuro continued, as Lambo pulled the switch upward. The light flashed into their eyes, and Giotto frowned, amazed but also confused at the same time. Asari blinked at it, wondering how such a small material was giving out so much light. Knuckle stared at it for a while, then thought that it was truly a work of art, mainly because there was no need to waste candles if you use that. G just glanced at it then turned away.

"As you can see, it flashes a beam of light. Though there is a limited amount time you can use it, because the batteries inside it wouldn't last for very long." Mukuro said. Giotto decided that the so-called batteries must be some kind of supporting source of material of the flashlight.

"… I still can't believe that you're from the future of 400 years, though." G raised his eyebrow, and Mukuro rolled his eyes.

"Do you think I can believe that I am in 400 years of the _past_? You need to be in my position, and you'll understand how frustrating it is to convince people." Mukuro said, as Lambo just sat down near his legs – mainly because it seemed like the only person who looked normal to him was Mukuro.

"Putting that matter aside," Knuckle fake coughed, "What's with those wounds, both of you?" Mukuro scowled, glancing down at his body. Lambo stared down at his own and then just hugged his legs, now knowing what to say in response.

"I am not going to give you an explanation about mine. And I don't know what happened to him – I never even met him until today." Mukuro said, and Lambo averted his gaze from all the others.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, as an old man – the family butler, Giordano entered the room. The older male frowned a little as he saw the kids, but didn't say anything. Instead, he handed Giotto a letter. "It's from _Signore** _Daemon, Primo." Giotto nodded and thanked the butler, as the old man went away. He opened, the letter, and his face paled as he scanned the words dotted on the piece of paper.

_**Primo, it's me. I was supposed to go back to the mansion in 3 days because I thought that gathering the information would be rather difficult, but instead I just decided to destroy the enemy Famiglia itself. The new enemy Famiglia is very weak in power and intelligence, Primo – their boss and strategist are both very naïve in terms of dealing with actual Famiglias. I do know that you are probably frustrated that I didn't complete the mission as you wanted to, but I didn't see the harm of just crushing them, as they're going to be nuisance to deal with in the future anyways. If this makes you happy, then I didn't damage any town or city property in the area – only their main base. I killed a few of their members, but oh well. When you received this letter, I would probably be in the carriage, not so faraway from Sicily. Have a good day, Primo. **_

_**-D. Spade.**_

"I don't see what's wrong. What he's saying here actually true for once." G grunted, and Giotto sighed, as he crumpled the letter up and threw it in the corner of the room, assuming that probably a maid or someone would put it away elsewhere later.

"Back to the topic." Asari coughed, "Let me ask again. Are you two really from the future of 400 years?" Now Mukuro looked like he was about to explode in frustration.

"I said-"

_**POOF!**_

Now, who's next?

**End of Chapter.**

**Hello guys, Rica again. So firstly, I am back with a story with a very similar plot as my previous discontinued story, 'Let Me Heal You'. Personally, I hated that story… so yeah. I will have to agree with every one of you, when you said I had too many OCs to keep in control, so the story went out of hand. Truth spoken.**

**This story is similar, with all the pasts, but I think I will make the kids connected in a different way. Like in my previous story, it was kind of focused on Kyoya (now that I notice, as it was his father that killed all of their parents…) so this time I decided I would have to try to make it equal as I can. But I can't really help it, as my favorite character in this anime is Hibari… and Mukuro. GAH WHATEVER!**

**Corvino* - Literal meaning in Italian; 'Raven'.**

**Signore** - 'Sir' in Italian.**

**The next chapter would include the appearance of different characters. You may have noticed that Lambo has a different character here, which some of you might think is terribly OOC… well, this will be explained later on as the story goes, how Lambo's personality became a stubborn and incredibly identical one to Hayato's. And besides, I hate when all stories start with characters like Tsuna, Hayato, and Takeshi first, so I just decided to make Mukuro and Lambo to appear in the first chapter.**

**Apart from that, thank you for your support, guys.**

**~Rica~**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

_**POOF!**_

"Again?"

"Why am I not even surprised?"

"This is dangerous… I am getting too used to this…"

"And Daemon is coming in like one freaking hour? My life must really suck."

The smoke cleared up, showing a rather short raven-haired boy. He looked a little pissed off in way, his eyebrows were narrowed, and his storm gray eyes were staring right into G's. He stared at his arm for a while, and then stood up. He was wearing a simple long sleeved black shirt and gray pants.

Then he looked at Mukuro.

"Why… are you here."

Mukuro spat. "How am I supposed to know?"

"You should be in the Lab right now."

"And you should be in the torture chambers. How did you break free from the restraints and protection walls? They used some kind of electric-making machine thing and connected it to metal bars right?"

"I am not a herbivore."

"Sure. Then lets wonder why you were there in the first place."

"Rokudo Mukuro, if you go any further, I will bite you to death." The new boy glared viciously, as Mukuro smirked. He summoned a trident from thin air – in which Giotto and his guardians were more than just shocked, because it was wrapped in a bundle of mist flames. They were faint – but it was definitely mist flames.

"Go ahead. Do you want to know who's the better trash?"

"You're a mere specimen for an experiment." Hibari narrowed his eyes, as Mukuro bit his bottom lip, loosing his temper as he swung his trident in the air – but before he could do so, G pointed the barrel of his gun and placed it near Hibari's head. The older male had confidence that even though Hibari didn't look like an average kid, he could still win. Firstly, there was something called a difference in battle experience, and secondly, Hibari was still a kid. His stamina couldn't last that much.

Hibari glared at G, though he didn't attempt to raise his tonfa against the man. Giotto thought about stopping his right hand man, but chose not to. They were still unsure about Hibari's identity after all – and furthermore, he seemed to be from the same time period as Mukuro and Lambo. Not to mention that he seemed to know Mukuro a lot.

Though, not in a good way.

"Lad, once you're in our mansion, you do need to act like a civilized human being, whether that kid over there annoys you or not. Like what the fuck; Daemon and Alaude's clones hating eachother? This must be something, but…" G trailed off for a while, and then cleared his throat, lowering his gun. "But anyways, you would need to tell us who you are… or we will have to call Alaude to take you to the interrogation room."

Suddenly, Mukuro snorted from the corner. "This is the skylark we are talking about. Taking him to the interrogation will show a negative effect instead." The boy said, as G frowned at him. Lampo glanced at Mukuro – it kind of crept the lightning guardian out, how… well, how _alike_ Daemon and Mukuro were. _But this isn't it… if there are all of Daemon, Alaude, and my clones… then there is definitely Giotto, G, Asari, and Knuckle's clones too. Then why do I feel so… _Lampo frowned, looked up at Mukuro again. _Or is it just me being a little to cautious of things today? It would be good if that were so, but… oh well. _

Hibari seemed to think about it for a while. He put his tonfas back into his shirt sleeves, and spoke, "Hibari. Hibari Kyoya." He glared at Mukuro again, pulling down the urge to beat the pineapple head down. G glanced at Giotto, and Giotto just nodded. G put his gun away, and left the others to question the rest.

"Seeing how you seem to know Mukuro-kun over here," Knuckle started, as Hibari remained silent. "I guess you're from the future of 400 years as well." Hibari turned to Knuckle, a frown spreading across his face. Mukuro grunted, as Lambo just sat quietly in the corner, not knowing what to do. He would've ran away if he could, but he figured that in this 'new' world, it was better to be more conscious of what kind of situation he was in.

"It seems like we were transported into the future of 400 years, skylark." Mukuro explained, as Hibari slowly scanned his surroundings. Indeed, everything looked quite ancient – not to mention that he couldn't see a hint of the use of electricity or modern technology.

"Is the Lab involved in this?" Hibari questioned, and Mukuro shrugged.

"The Lab we know… they aren't exactly people who would go through such a big amount of trouble just to see how much we can endure. They would've picked another option to do so, like they always do." Mukuro paused, glancing at Lambo who was hunched up in the corner. "And besides, it seems like we have someone from the same time period as us, but isn't from the Lab. You don't recognize him, do you? You should know better than me because you moved a few more sections than me. You moved about 7 times, didn't you?" Mukuro tilted his head to side, as Hibari stared at Lambo for a while, and then nodded. He definitely didn't recognize Lambo – and furthermore, the kid's clothing wasn't what the Lab provided to any section. The clothing the Lab gave out was more… more fit for their selfish purposes.

Giotto and the other adults frowned at the conversation the two boys were sharing – they didn't know what the Lab was, nor any of what the two were talking about – but they decided that it wasn't a topic that they were allowed to play with. At least, not yet.

"Already 3 kids until now… isn't this a little dangerous?" G asked, as Asari nodded.

"3 kids that look exactly like us… and not to mention, it's not that there are _already_ 3 kids – it's that there are _only_ 3 kids. Do you truly think this would be it?" Lampo folded his arms, and Giotto nodded.

"Lampo is right. If my Intuition is still usable… then there should be at least 4 more kids coming. Of course, that's the minimum. Just because there are 7 of us, that doesn't mean that there are only going to be 7 clones that look like us." Giotto thought for a while, resuming back into his calm self. "Talbot."

The guardians glanced at their boss. "Asari, can you take the children to another room? Knuckle, please go get Talbot from his office, and G, assemble all the Vongola guardians to the meeting room. We're having an emergency meeting." Giotto ordered, and G frowned.

"But Giotto, it's only a bunch of kids-"

"From the future." Giotto cut off, and G finally gave in. "Also, Lampo, can you stay here for a while until G calls you? I want to make sure that no more kids arrive for now – at least until the meeting is over. Thank you." Giotto walked away, before Lampo could even protest about his role.

G walked out of the mansion, running a little as he rushed to the CEDEF quarters. He was glad that the CEDEF department that Alaude worked in wasn't so far away.

"Who are you, and why are you-" before the guard could question further, G glared at the male.

"Alaude. Call your boss. Tell him that it's an emergency meeting called by Vongola Primo." G growled, as the guard jumped, then ran into the large building, yelling something. G sighed, as he leaned on the gates.

Suddenly, a carriage stopped right in front of him, as dusty fog crossed his face. G coughed, motioning the sand to go elsewhere. Inside the carriage was Daemon Spade, the mist guardian of the Vongola.

"I thought you were at the mansion, pinky." Daemon smirked, as G got ready to shout a curse back at the melon head – only to snap back to reality, and remember Giotto's orders. G calmed himself down – barely – regaining his composure.

"It's an emergency meeting called by Giotto, Daemon." He glanced at the CEDEF building again. "Wait for Alaude for a while. He should be coming out soon."

As soon as G finished talking, Alaude walked out of the building. He narrowed his eyes when he saw Daemon in the carriage, but sighed as he got on together with G. Silence hung in the air, as the 3 males awkwardly sat together in the small area.

"So, why a meeting out of sudden? Paperwork issues again?" Daemon opened his mouth, as G stared at both Alaude and Daemon for a while, and reminded himself of the similarities between the two adults in front of him, and the kids he had just met. It was quite creepy in a way.

"Well…" G started. "How should I put this…" the red head seemed to think about it for a while. "Would you two believe it, if someone says that they saw kids that looked exactly – and when I mean exactly, I mean fucking exactly – like you, acts like you, and even talks like you?" G questioned, his arms folded across his chest. Daemon and Alaude glanced at eachother.

"Why such a question at this moment?" Alaude frowned, as G sighed heavily.

"Well you see… like about an hour ago, a boy who looked about 7 or 8 years old appeared out of nowhere." G started, as Daemon tilted his head to side. Out of nowhere? Was it even possible for someone to appear out of nowhere? Well, it wasn't impossible if you possessed mist flames, but for normal human beings, it would be pretty hard to do.

"And?"

"He… he looked exactly like Lampo. It was just he difference of hair color – the other elements looked just like Lampo's facial features." G paused. "And their names are similar too. The boy's name just turned out to be Lambo." Daemon frowned, as Alaude listened attentively, not saying a single word.

"He said some weird stuff." G sighed. "He said he was from a place… a place called… Shitamachi, I think."

"Shitamachi?" Daemon narrowed his eyebrows. "Where is that place? It sounds Japanese, but… I don't really…" Daemon glanced side wards at Alaude. "Do you know where it is?" Alaude just silently shook his head, as G continued quietly.

"It turns out that… well, Shitamachi is now a place in Japan." G said, as Daemon just listened as well. "When we were talking about this, another kid appeared. His name was Rokudo Mukuro, and this one… looked just like you, Spade." G looked up to see Daemon's shocked face. The illusionist pointed at himself, his eyes disbelieving, as his index finger trembled in mid-air.

"Yes, you. Maybe if there is a difference, it would be that he is odd-eyed, and has a different fruit shaped hairstyle than you." G shrugged. Daemon frowned at the phrase, odd-eyed.

"Doesn't odd eyes only apply for cats?" Daemon questioned, and G shrugged.

"I don't know. But that Mukuro kid told us that they were from 400 years in the future. He held out something called a flashlight, which apparently is a kind of machine that gives out light for a limited amount of time, receiving its energy from a small device thing." G explained, as Alaude just stared at G for a while and turned away.

"Soon after that, a kid named Hibari Kyoya appeared. It turned out that he was in bad terms with Mukuro, but they did know eachother, through something that they seem to call the Lab. I was quite surprised, because he seemed to be pretty skilled and talented in battle."

"Let me guess. That child looked exactly like Alaude over here." Daemon pointed his thumb at the platinum blonde, and G nodded solemnly. "The description makes it rather too obvious in a way." This made Daemon earn a deadly glare from Alaude, but Daemon simply ignored it – as he was quite used to the whole situation.

The carriage stopped when G was about to continue the talk. They decided to go on with the conversation in the emergency meeting, when every one of them was actually present.

Giotto was sitting in the room, after G came back with Lampo. They all sat around the table, with Talbot just standing next to Giotto, waiting for all the guardians to arrive and be seated in their chairs.

"So, it seems like we are all here." Giotto nodded, and then glanced at Talbot, indicating to the man that they were all ready. Talbot started to speak.

"It's nothing but the pure truth that those kids are here, in this world – a world where those kids certainly do not belong. They walk a different path as us, and they, to be specific, shouldn't be here… but of course, that would be the case if they are normal kids." Talbot started.

"Are you saying that… they are special?"

"If you can say they are special, then yes, they are indeed very special. Nonetheless, they are your descendants after all."

Heavy silence sat around the room. Each of the adults tried their best to process the information they received to their fullest. Descendants. For Giotto and his guardians, descendants just seemed like something they would never have – they were still young after all.

"Our descendants, you say." Giotto cleared his throat. Talbot nodded.

"Vongola's last hope. And when I mean hope, I don't mean hope that is something that would help the Vongola to rise back to power – I mean the Vongola to gain another chance to become pure and clean again."

"Pure… and clean?"

"The future, Giotto, of your Famiglia isn't bright." Talbot said, as if he could see the future of this vigilante family. He sighed, and shook his head. "The kids were probably here to change the dark destiny and fate of this Famiglia. It's probably to start all over again – starting from creating a whole new successor that will take your place as Vongola Secondo, Giotto." Talbot said, as Giotto just frowned.

"Those kids suffered because of what was in their blood. Vongola's blood, I must say. They were probably transported here to be free from their fate. Not completely free, but at least so that they can start again." Talbot looked up at the first generation. "Those 3 kids were disposed. Disposed cruelly, by their own family."

"May I ask how you know all this?" G questioned as Talbot just smiled mysteriously.

"It's a matter of time, G." Talbot responded shortly, and then looked up at the ceiling for a while. "This isn't the end, as you all might've noticed. There are still 5 more precious kids to come. And they wouldn't be able to return."

"What do you mean? The kids that arrive…"

"They wouldn't be able to return to their own world." Talbot said, rubbing his chin with his right hand. "At least, for a while."

"Don't they have a family waiting for them?" Knuckle questioned, and Talbot stared at the sun guardian for a long time.

"I did say that those kids were disposed, didn't I? It wouldn't do them any good even though they go back to that world – the world they are originally from. I am not going to tell you any further details, but-"

"PRIMO!" A maid crashed into the meeting room, as all the attention focused on the panting female. "A-a kid- no, actually, 2 kids are-"

Giotto and his guardians immediately stood up without giving in a second thought. They pushed past the maid, and trudged down the long corridors, until they came back to Giotto's office. Inside, there was a little girl and a brown haired boy surrounded by a bunch of other kids. They were murmuring amongst eachother, Mukuro and Hibari looking panicked, and Lambo looking afraid. The brown haired boy seemed to be at the verge of crying, and the girl…

"She- she was coughing blood just now." Mukuro said, and Daemon was surprised at how much the boy did look like him. Giotto hurried Knuckle to go check up on the girl, and Knuckle did – his eyes widening as he saw how sunken Chrome's stomach was.

"She-she doesn't have any of her organs. Giotto, even this can't be healed with my power." Knuckle stuttered nervously, as he never faced such a situation before. Daemon took a closer look at the girl. She was breathing heavily, cold sweat all over her body and blood tainting her white dress. _She looks like me… so I have two?_

"Get out, I think I have an idea." Daemon said, pushing Knuckle out of the way. He summoned his scythe and concentrated his flames on the tip of his fingers, as he passed his strength into the girl's body, allowing him to create the illusions of her missing organs. At first she seemed to still be having a hard time, until her breathing slowly evened out nicely.

But now, the brown haired boy was being the problem? Why? He was crying. Why is this a problem? Because none of the tenth generation know how to deal with kids. Crying kids and girls to be specific.

"Daemon, do something! You're the one with a girlfriend!"

"Ha? Elena doesn't cry!"

"Please don't say none of us have dealt with crying kids before?" G grumbled, half-joking. Everyone went silent. "Oh god, heavenly god." The right hand man sulked in the corner, Giotto trying his best to comfort his friend.

"Uh… um, boy?" Asari smiled at the weeping brunette. The boy looked up, and Asari felt like he was struck by some kind of weird force when he saw the big doe eyes looking into his own.

_He looks too much like Giotto… what's with the same gravity defying hairstyle?_ The swordsman just stared at the boy for a while. "Uh… um, what's your name?" Asari asked as gently as he could, as the boy hiccupped and sniffed.

"Y-Yamamoto- Yamamoto nii-san…" The boy mumbled, and Asari frowned. That didn't seem to be the boy's name, but… Asari sighed, not knowing what to do. He was the kindest and most gentle man in the family, along with Knuckle who was a priest, but he never had dealt with kids before.

"I don't want to…" the kid went on. Mukuro and Hibari glanced at eachother, then glanced at the adults. "I don't want to have…" the brunette sniffed. That's when another explosion went off – three at once, actually.

"I really hope those three are the final." The brunette jumped at the sound and the pink smoke, as he coughed and waved the weird scented gas out of his face. Or at least, he tried to.

"WHAT THE FUCK? JUST WHAT THE HELL-"

"EXTREME!"

"Eh?"

Giotto and G flinched as they heard the voices. They could kind of tell who's clones these were going to be.

The smoke cleared up, showing a silver and white haired boy standing side by side, with another raven haired boy sitting in between them.

"Haya nii-chan!" Lambo smiled, running towards the boy. The other looked confused for a while, until a scowl spread upon his face.

"WHERE WERE YOU, LAMBO YOU IDIOTIC COW!" The boy looked quite mad, but his face softened as Lambo tugged on his shirt.

"Yamamoto!" the brunette cried, as the raven haired boy – seemingly named Yamamoto, blinked, and then grinned. "Tsuna! Where were you? I was worried because Izuki-sensei saying that she would scold you if you come one minute late and I-" Yamamoto stopped, as he saw the brunette sleeping, leaning down on his chest.

"He must've been tired. Should I take him to a separate room, Giotto?" Knuckle asked, and Giotto nodded quietly. Yamamoto frowned at Knuckle.

"Who are you? I can't give Tsuna to a stranger that I just met." Yamamoto narrowed his eyes, and Knuckle could see the protectiveness towards the brunette in Yamamoto's eyes.

"I'm not going to hurt him." Knuckle said, but Yamamoto just continued to frown at the older man.

"I don't believe in adults who say that anymore." Yamamoto averted his eyes while saying this. Knuckle just tilted his head to the side, wondering what those words could mean – but as a priest, he knew that it didn't mean something so delightful.

"That I would have to agree with." The silver haired boy – whom Lambo called Haya nii-chan, glared at all the adults surrounding them in the room. "Who are you people, and what did you do to Lambo?"

"They didn't do anything. As a matter a fact, I would say that they helped us." Mukuro shrugged, and Giotto was thankful that the boy wasn't as cautious as the other ones. "… Well, if they were going to do something to us, I wouldn't be surprised. Those are what humans are – what adults show to lost children. So selfish. So manipulative." Mukuro said scornfully, as Giotto now frowned, noticing that Mukuro wasn't being cautious – he was just…

"I seriously have no idea what you kids are all talking about, but can we please start with the introductions? It's quite uncomfortable for me to keep calling a kid boy or girl, or something like that…" Daemon ran his fingers through his long hair.

"And why should we tell you our names? They might've told you theirs, but we-"

"Now, now."

All the attention focused Talbot, who now entered the crowded room.

"Welcome to the past… kids of the fallen Vongola of the future." Talbot smiled, as Mukuro and Hibari glanced at one another. Gokudera also frowned at the mentioned name, and Ryohei pursed his lips together, as if the name was a threat itself. The others just blinked, having no idea what the old man was talking about.

"Vongola." Mukuro muttered. "So that's what you people are?" the boy questioned, and the paused. "Vongola of our world is a mafia Famiglia that kill innocent civilians with no legitimate reason. They commit wrong without batting an eye, and they do the most grotesque actions to kids. It wouldn't be a lie if half of the human trafficking that happens in our world is caused by the Vongola." Mukuro said bitterly, as Giotto's eyes widened in shock.

"No." Gokudera said, as Mukuro frowned at the silver haired boy.

"What do you mean no? It seems like you also possess some knowledge about the Vongola – then you should know better than anyone else – that the Vongola of our world is-"

"Of our world, yes, they are corrupted. They are disgusting. But…" Gokudera glanced around his surroundings. "Past, you said?" Gokudera stared at Talbot, as the man nodded. "There was a time where the Vongola was… was a vigilante Famiglia that protected the civilians of Sicily. I am pretty sure that was 400 years ago, the time of Vongola Primo." Gokudera looked up at Giotto. "Giotto Ieyasu Sawada – named after the Tokugawa family line of the Edo period. The first and last boss of Vongola that did something for others, and not the sake of his own welfare."

"What do you mean? And how do you know all that information?" Mukuro narrowed his eyes. "According to the records, all the sources that lead to the early life of Vongola Primo, and Vongola's creation – it should've been blocked by the private forces of CEDEF and it's allied-"

"I just happen to know about them. Don't ask." Gokudera cut off, as Alaude frowned at the mention of his own organization. "Especially when we have the founder of CEDEF in front of us." Gokudera whispered at Mukuro and Hibari, glancing at Alaude.

"You know a lot, boy." Talbot smiled. "I am not fully aware of the Vongola of the future. I just know that it isn't the Vongola Giotto over here intended to make."

"I don't know much about the Vongola, but I do know that those people shouldn't exist." Ryohei raised his eyebrows, and the glanced at Giotto. "If you say that you created the Famiglia with a clean and firm purpose, then I would believe you. But unfortunately, the Vongola of the future seemed to have forgotten what they were supposed to do."

"I know that you kids suffered immensely because of the Vongola. You might not know it, but you did suffer." Talbot said. "That is why you were transported to this world. If you live on here… then you can forget about your previous life. Live a new one, kids."

"Live on… here." Hibari repeated, and Talbot nodded. "Are you trying to say, that we wouldn't be able to return to where we originally stayed?"

Talbot remained silent for a while. "If you insist, then I might be able to find a way. But here's the question, lad." Talbot paused. "Do you want to return?" None of the kids said anything. "Do you want to return to the place, where you need to tormented for something you never deserved? If you want to, then you can. Just remember that you wouldn't have a chance to live a better future."

"A better future, you say." Mukuro said quietly. "Adults always say that."

"… You don't believe in adults." Giotto commented, and Mukuro glared up at the blonde male.

"Adults…" Yamamoto mumbled. "Adults say that they would keep their promise. Adults say that dreams come true. Lies. Adults lie all the time. They look down at one another. Human beings are born like that. Humans are selfish."

"Is it like that in your world?" Lampo asked quietly, and Yamamoto nodded.

"Our world is completely corrupted." Gokudera muttered. "Nobody is kind. Nobody is pure. Nobody is innocent, and nobody cares for someone else other than themselves. Even at the most desperate moments, they lie. That's the truth." Gokudera said. "At least, human beings of the 21st century seem to be."

Talbot nodded, and didn't say anything for a few seconds. Then he opened his mouth again. "Would you kids live here, if I say that we promise that we really wouldn't do anything to you?"

"Adults are full of promises, sir. I don't believe in them anymore." Yamamoto smiled bitterly, as Talbot grinned.

"Then lets do this. Stay in our mansion for one month. If you feel like you want to return to your original world, then I would find a way to bring you all back. However, if you like this place… then you can stay here for the rest of your remaining life. How does it sound?" Talbot smiled, and all the kids in the room blinked, excluding Tsuna, who was sleeping.

"W-wait, Talbot! I didn't say anything-"

"Shush, Giotto." Talbot said, hitting Giotto on the head with his walking stick. "It's only for a month. Each of your guardians can take care of one kid. It's no big deal. And there's Elena too. Would it be that hard?"

Giotto shrugged. "I don't really-"

"Anyways, kids, each of the adults here would take care of one or two of you. It's only for the month you'll be staying for – and of course, if you wish to stay, then we'll continue to take care of you."

"Talbot-" G tapped the old man's shoulders, but was hit by the walking stick as well.

"Introductions. Giotto, start." Talbot glared, as the blonde just gulped as he stepped in front of the kids.

"My-my name is Giotto Ieyasu Sawada. Please just call me Giotto. And can I take care of…" Giotto scanned the kids. He was uncomfortable with G's, Alaude's, and Daemon's… but of course, what came into his eye was his clone, sleeping on Yamamoto's lap. "I would take care of brunette over there. What's his name again?" Giotto glanced at Yamamoto, who still looked unsure, but sighed. "His name is Tsuna. Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"The same last name… coincidence, I suppose." G mumbled, as Giotto scooped Tsuna up with his two arms. He mentally squealed as he saw Tsuna's chubby cheeks, and small hands wobbling in the air, and as they squeezed Giotto's shirt.

"… My name is G. And I am taking… (forcefully taking…) that brat over there." G pointed at Gokudera, as Gokudera scowled.

"I don't like people with pink hair. Is that even natural?"

"It's red, you freaking annoying brat." G grunted, though didn't shout as he was scared that the brunette Giotto was carrying was going to wake up and cry. Oh boy, how much he hated crying kids.

"Hm… my turn, right? Well, then my name is Asari Ugetsu. And I think that I would take care of Yamamoto-kun over there." Asari smiled, and Yamamoto blinked obliviously.

"Me?" he asked, and Asari nodded. "Well… ok…" the boy sounded obscure, but he just shrugged, as the remaining 4 started to frown – especially Mukuro and Hibari, because they didn't want to be taken cared by anyone. But did they have a choice? No. Why? Because they didn't know how to make a fucking time machine.

"My name is Daemon Spade, and can I have… Mukuro-kun, and also the girl sleeping in the other room?"

"I do not want to have a melon as a parent, even though it's temporary. Can I live in the streets and come back after a month?" Mukuro sighed, as a vein popped up on Daemon's forehead. Alaude snorted.

"The kid has more common sense than you, rotten melon."

"Nufufu… fuck you, Alaude."

"Fuck yourself, Daemon Spade."

"Can you two just shut up?" G grumbled.

"Well, Daemon, it's great that you're volunteering to take care of two kids, but are you sure you can do it?" Giotto asked, as Daemon shrugged.

"How hard can it be? And besides, none of you people have a girlfriend that can help you take care of a girl, right? Of course I am the perfect one, then." Daemon said it matter-of-factly, as the rest didn't question further.

"Well, my name is Knuckle, and I decided to take care of… well, what's your name?" Knuckle smiled at Ryohei, and Ryohei looked up.

"Me? Oh… uh, Sasagawa Ryohei to the extreme."

"Is that so? Well, then I hope we get along, Ryohei-kun."

They moved on, with only having Lambo and Hibari left. Hibari seemed to be uninterested in what was happening, and Lambo was just glancing at Gokudera time to time, who was talking to G – more like arguing, but oh well.

"Hn. Alaude." Alaude said, and then looked down at Hibari. Hibari looked back up, expressionless. The boy didn't say anything. _He's strong… a carnivore, I suppose? _Hibari smirked, and Alaude turned, as if he didn't need to say or do anything further.

"I never knew Alaude could use telepathy. Or was it some kind of empathy link?" Giotto questioned G, as his friend shrugged.

"He's Alaude."

"Right. I almost forgot."

"Wait, wait, wait, pause!" Lampo yelled, and then pointed at Lambo. "Then I need to take care of that kid? Why don't I have a choice?"

"Because you're the youngest, and obviously, since we all took our clones, you take your clone. Common sense, Lampo." Daemon explained smoothly, as Lampo glared at the melon haired illusionist.

"Well, since now you all chose the children you would take care of…" Talbot started. "I hope you stay well for a month. I will come back, and ask if you would want to go back."

The kids didn't say anything. Some of them wanted to go back, some of them didn't know what to do.

_It's only a month. Nothing can happen._

Oh really?

**End of chapter.**

**Hi guys, and sorry for the late update. I was a little busy yesterday, because I just arrived from the airport, and I had to unpack all my stuff… etc. I wrote 1000 more words though, as a kind of a way of apologizing. Thanks for being patient with me.**

**By the way, I do know that several characters were OOC, like Yamamoto. They would come back to normal in a few following chapters, though I am not sure when. I apologize for this, but please bear with me because it's a part of the plot and character development. Thank you.**

**So, uh, here are the replies to all your supportive reviews. Personally, I never knew this story would be this popular, but I am glad that all of you like and enjoy my new story. Thanks.**

**DaVinci – I wouldn't put it any OCs that would develop as a major character in the story. Thanks for your review.**

**Icera – I deeply apologize it was a day late. I added 1000 words more. I hope you're satisfied. Thanks for your review.**

**Guest 1 – I am flattered, and glad that you like it better than LMHY. I apologize for my poor planning of the story that time. Thanks for your review.**

**Natsu Yuuki – I am glad you are enjoying this story, and it's nice to hear that you like story with such genres. Thanks for your review.**

**Zhizn24 – You're very supportive. Thanks for your review.**

**PurpleCielo1117 – I am glad to hear that my writing style improved. Thanks for your review.**

**Eion1783 – It's nice to hear you enjoy my story. I would try to keep up to your expectations. Thanks for your review.**

**Guest 2 – I appreciate your enthusiasm. Thanks for your review.**

**Sosososososo – I updated, and I hop you liked the new chapter. Thanks for your review.**

**Foxchick1 – I hope you like this chapter. Thanks for your review.**

**Guest 3 – your compliments are overwhelming. Thanks for your review.**

**Guest 4 – Thanks for telling me a precious piece of information. You might be right – it can be 150 years, but in the manga it does say 400 years… I think. Almost all the stories on this website say 400 years, so I don't really plan on changing it. But again, thanks for telling me, and thanks for your review.**

**You guys are all very helpful. I would try my best to keep up to your expectations. Also, there might be a lot of mistakes, as I don't edit my chapters after I finish writing them. Please bear with me.**

**~Rica~**


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

_**MAY 11**__**TH**__**, 16XX, DAY 2…**_

It's already been 2 full days since the kids' arrival. Giotto and his guardians realized during that short but also long time, that the kids divided into two different groups. One was a group that was rather open and more friendly – the latter was the one that didn't even try to talk at all. Giotto was personally glad that Tsuna – the kid he got to take care of – was in the 'open' group. Tsuna cried often, but other than that, he was a happy and shy little boy. Giotto sometimes found himself squealing over Tsuna's cuteness.

Gokudera was on the other group – he didn't talk to any of the guardians, except cursing a few times whenever someone tried to talk to him – excluding Lambo; he was the only one Gokudera ever said anything to, and he was also the only one Gokudera seemed to be considerate about. Giotto and Asari often discussed about this – as G and Lampo never seemed to be the ones to share a brotherly bond among their Famiglia.

Yamamoto was just like Asari at most times – he was friendly, easy-going, and sometimes was really dense. He and Gokudera didn't seem to get along, because Gokudera often said rude words to Tsuna, and Yamamoto didn't approve that. Giotto found it amusing that Yamamoto and Gokudera both had "brothers" that they were protective about. G said that he doubted that they were all even related in any way, but Giotto could still see that the boys didn't care about such things.

Mukuro and Chrome seemed to be getting along as well. While Mukuro was cold to everyone else, Giotto sometimes found the boy either talking to Chrome or Hibari. Mukuro smiled time to time while talking with Chrome – as if he felt peaceful and calm whenever he was talking to her. On the other hand, when he was talking to Hibari, he looked more uncomfortable and serious – and mostly, frustrated. Giotto wasn't sure of their relationship, but he could clearly see that the two weren't in good terms.

Lambo was quiet – he was usually found sitting in the corner, nibbling on a piece of candy, or chewing some meat. Lambo hated it when someone took his food, and he seemed to have a habit or eating everything very fast. Giotto and his guardians never figured out why – but G said that it was probably because of how he used to live when he was in the future. _It's the thing with poor people_, G said, _The fear of having the food in front of their eyes for the first few seconds, and then the food suddenly disappearing, as if it was all a dream. Hunger is a scary thing, Giotto._

Ryohei was the most energetic one out of all the eight kids. His catchphrase seemed to be "Extreme", and he said that he was interested in boxing. Knuckle was startled that such a young boy knew all the basic stances, and even knew a few of the moves that even a professional boxer found hard to do. But at times, Knuckle said that Ryohei would be very quiet, and stare into an old photo, and stay like that for a few minutes. Then he wouldn't say anything for a few hours, until he came back to his energetic and bright self.

Hibari, Giotto figured, definitely was a kid with Alaude's blood. He didn't say anything, he was mysterious, and he was well… independent. He would be gone for most of the day, and he wouldn't be there for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Mukuro said that it was because Hibari hated to associate with "herbivores", and furthermore, the skylark didn't like to eat. Giotto and his guardians often spotted him coming in and out through the window, or talking to Mukuro about something. Everytime Giotto heard the two boys talking, all he heard was something about the Lab, and also something about a new experiment. But other than that, none of the adults have even received a chance to talk to the raven haired boy so far.

"Alaude, can you do something to that boy?" G finally asked, his eyebrows raised in a frustrated manner, his face twisting into a scowl, and the feeling of annoyance spreading across his eyes. Alaude looked up for a while, and then averted his gaze elsewhere. G pinched the bridge of his nose.

They were all currently in a meeting room, the kids all out somewhere in the large mansion – except Hibari, because even the adults had no idea where he could be. The only thing they were aware of, was that he always came back each day to eat the leftover food on the dishes, or to grab something from the cupboards.

"G, you're in no position to say such things. Your descendant doesn't talk to you at all as well." Daemon chuckled, "Mine at least says something, though it's mostly about how weird my hairstyle is." Daemon sighed, as G grunted. He also seemed to be frustrated about the fact that his descendant wouldn't talk to him at all.

"At least I'm trying," G grumbled, "that guy over there isn't even attempting to start a conversation." The red head pointed straight at Alaude, who just ignored this and flipped another page of the newspaper.

"Maa, maa… they will open up soon. They're just shy that's all." Asari shrugged, as Daemon glanced at the swordsman, and snorted. "Shy? I _seriously _doubt that that's the reason. Sure, my dear Chrome-chan does seem to be a little scared talking to others so she usually hangs around Mukuro," Daemon paused, "but in the case of that Hibari Kyoya or Gokudera Hayato, it seems like there's another reason behind their stubborn reactions."

"It might just simply be the natural environment they've been living in." Knuckle said simply, "Talbot did say that the 21st century had similar components as our time period. He also said things about human trafficking, juvenile delinquents… etc." The priest shrugged, as the other guardians nodded.

"It's just providing us some firm evidence," G grunted, as he lighted his cigarette with the small candle flame next to him. "That those kids were possibly a part of those actions. And seeing some of them, it's almost as if they were really juvenile delinquents. Hayato probably is one, though I can't be so sure." G clucked his tongue, as he breathed a puff of smoke out of his mouth.

"_Hayato? _You already call him by his first name? How sweet, G." Lampo said teasingly, as G punched his head right after. "It's not as if you're in the position to say that, you filthy, ungrateful _brat. _And besides, half of us here call them by their first names. Of course… except that prideful Mr. CEDEF over there." G grunted, as Alaude glared at the right hand man meaningfully.

"That's because calling them by their last names are rather weird on the tongue, and in the case of Lambo… he doesn't have a last name." Giotto commented, as the room fell silent. They were reminded of what the boy had told them on their very first encounter – he casually said that he didn't have a last name – and even his first name wasn't a one given by his parents, but a boy who was not even related to him by blood.

"It's rather odd to me though, some of their relationships." Asari spoke up. "Tsuna-kun and Takeshi seem to rely on one another and know eachother very well, but they aren't blood related as well. Hayato-kun and Lambo-kun seem to have a brotherly bond, but the truth is that Lambo was found by Hayato when he was a toddler on the streets, so they also don't have any connections between one another either. Ryohei-kun seems to be a lonely individual, and Chrome-chan also is presumed to fall in the same category as him. Lastly, the relationship that most intrigues me is Mukuro-kun and Kyoya-kun…"

"Ah, about that, I was curious as well." Giotto nodded in agreement. "They don't even share a friendship-like bond like Tsuna and Takeshi, and don't share a brotherly bond like Hayato or Lambo, and they're not even isolated individuals that don't know eachother at all. At first I simply not it was some odd rivalry between small boys, but at the same time, they seem to be fond with one another's existence." Giotto concluded, his expression filled with confusion.

G shrugged. "It's kind of like their relationship." The right hand man pointed at the mist and cloud guardian. "They hate eachother, but can't live without one another because life would be fucking boring without fighting someone at the same level, and sometimes don't even care about each other's existence, but at rare situations, they surprisingly get along." Giotto blinked, as Alaude and Daemon instantly glared at the male.

"Well… putting that matter aside…"

**MEANWHILE, WITH THE KIDS…**

"Haya-nii, why are you so mean to everyone?" Lambo asked, his face clueless as he leaned on Gokudera's shoulders. The silver haired boy scowled, as he flipped another page of the thick book in his hands. Then he sighed, patting Lambo's head. "You know that it's not safe to trust anyone, Lambo. Humans are not trustworthy at all."

Lambo put on a sullen face. "But… Takeshi-nii was kind as well. He didn't look like he would ever hurt us, like the other men last week-" Gokudera glared at Lambo, and Lambo didn't say anything more, as his shoulders hunched up at the silverlette's look. Gokudera stood up and walked away, as Lambo just stared, and then sighed heavily.

On the other side of the room, Yamamoto and Tsuna were talking to eachother happily, as Tsuna giggled time to time. Then the boy spotted Lambo, and then frowned. "Yamamoto nii-san, Lambo is alone again." He pointed at the fluffy black haired boy, who was curled up in the corner, staring at his feet. Yamamoto glanced around the quiet library, noticing that Gokudera, who usually stayed with Lambo, wasn't present – at least, not anymore.

"Lambo." The raven haired boy smiled at Lambo, as the little boy looked up slowly. "Do you want to play with us?" Lambo hesitated, and then finally opened his mouth, to answer, only to be blocked mid-way by a mysterious voice appearing out of nowhere.

"This is a library, Kufufu… you certainly shouldn't be playing in it, should you kiddos?" Yamamoto frowned as Mukuro chuckled, holding Chrome's hand. "Your name was Mukuro, was it? You've already got so close to the girl?" Yamamoto questioned, as Mukuro just shrugged, as Chrome hid quietly behind his back.

"I'm not the worst at socializing, unlike the skylark. I can make friends if I want to, I can be friendly if I want to, I can be a bastard if I want to, and furthermore," Mukuro smirked, lifting his head up a little. "I can kill anyone if I want to. It's all because I'm Rokudo Mukuro." Yamamoto frowned.

"It was almost as if you couldn't win that Hibari guy the other day when you fought in the dining room. Is that also because you're Rokudo Mukuro?" Yamamoto questioned, narrowing his eyes as he pulled Tsuna against his body. Mukuro twitched at the mention of his rival, and then smirked. "I'm stronger than him. Don't think that I unleashed all my strength just to grab victory from that _bird_ that can never escape its own cage. I-" Mukuro stopped, noticing that he said too much. He sighed, and then turned away. "Let's go, Nagi." Chrome followed the little illusionist, as Yamamoto frowned at the guy.

Suddenly, when Mukuro was about to exit the room, the door slammed open, revealing Ryohei, who was covered in a layer of sweat and panting heavily. "Mukuro… right?" Ryohei looked down and smiled at Chrome. "And Dokuro-chan." Mukuro glared at the small boy for a while. "You could at least take a bath before coming into a _library._" Mukuro said, as Ryohei laughed nervously, scratching his sweaty back. "Well, you see… I did try to go to the bathroom to take a shower, but I still can't figure out to use all the water and stuff. Back in our time, there used to be all the water faucets and everything, but over here it's all… different." Mukuro snorted. "Of course it is. We are in the _past, _Sasagawa Ryohei." Ryohei shrugged, as Mukuro walked past him. Chrome followed quietly.

"What's wrong with that guy today? He's acting all weird." Ryohei narrowed his eyes, asking Yamamoto. The little boy shrugged, Tsuna still in his arms. Lambo was now gone – it seemed like he left a little after Mukuro arrived. "Mukuro is always weird. So is that Hibari guy and the Gokudera guy." Yamamoto mumbled, as Ryohei shrugged helplessly.

A few seconds of silence fell over the large room, until the glass windows trembled a little until it slammed open. It was Hibari. He jumped down and landed on the floor and stood up again, cracking his knuckles a little. He raised his eyebrows once he spotted Ryohei, Yamamoto, and Tsuna. "Hey, Hibari!" Ryohei shouted, as Hibari winced at the volume. "I saw you jumping over the gates while I was doing my workout outside. Are you busy?" Ryohei asked, as Hibari frowned, not saying anything.

"Ne, why don't you talk, nii-san? You can speak, right?" Tsuna tilted his head to side a little, as Yamamoto jumped at the comment, and Hibari glared, slowly reaching for his tonfas. However, he immediately pulled his temper down, seeing Tsuna's innocent face. His expression softened, as he remembered the kids at the Lab. _He doesn't know how brutal this world can be. I suppose I don't need to teach him so early about the truth of this world… this planet still needs at least one innocent child for one more second. Even if it's a herbivore… hn, I can go over it for today. _Hibari sighed, and walked past the clueless trio. He stopped and glanced at Tsuna, and opened his mouth.

"I can speak herbivore. I just don't bother to waste my energy on such herbivorous stuff." Hibari said quietly, as Tsuna smiled, glad that the skylark finally responded to his question. Hibari's eyes widened as he saw the smile, and then returned to its normal size as he walked away. He closed the door and stood there for a while. _Smiling at me… huh. _Hibari closed his eyes for a while, as if he was thinking a little more about the past. He walked away soon after, leaving the trio alone.

"Hey." Hibari looked up to see Gokudera, hanging on one of chandeliers. "I want to talk to you for a while." He jumped down, as Hibari frowned. "You and that Mukuro guy," Gokudera started, raising his right brow. "You're specimens for the Laboratory of the Estraneo Famiglia, right?" Hibari's eyes widened, as he scowled at Gokudera.

Hibari remained wordless for a few seconds, until he sighed and opened his mouth to speak. "That pineapple is a specimen, yes. He's used for special experiments conducted by the most famous and professional scientists of the Famiglia. But I'm different. I'm not a specimen." Hibari paused, and then raised his face, smirking. "And you, herbivore, are the _trashed _son of the _Scuro _Famiglia." Gokudera scowled.

"How did you-"

"I noticed you looked familiar from the moment I saw you, herbivore. And didn't I tell you… I am _different. _I know some information that might be threatening to you." Hibari shrugged, as Gokudera narrowed his eyes. "But I'm not a herbivore that uses dirty tricks to just step over some useless materials, so I wouldn't say anything. But… isn't _that_ the reason you are avoiding that little brown haired herbivore? Because he was supposed to be…" Hibari trailed off, as Gokudera grunted. "By the way, that little bratty herbivore you carry around," Hibari glanced at the silverlette, as Gokudera sighed. "You do know who he is supposed to be too, right?" Gokudera shrugged. "I do. But now we're in the same position. I don't plan on abandoning him." Hibari raised his left brow. "I see." Then he continued to walk down the hallway, as Gokudera stared at him.

"Just… what is he?"

**MEANWHILE, SOMEWHERE IN THE FUTURE…**

"Byakuran-sama, we can't find them. And it's already been two days… I think we should give up already-"

"Rasiel." A man purred, a hint of rage mixed in the smooth voice, as the strawberry blonde haired man in front flinched in slight fear. "Are you telling me, to lose the chance of breaking all the possible future threats to our Millefiore Famiglia? Give up the fun of seeing those 8 kids that share the blood of _that_ Vongola Famiglia, getting tortured by my private forces, falling into the whirlwind of my perfect plan to torment them for a lifetime? Everything was turning out just as I hoped. One child lost hope, one child lost his only family, one was trashed, one tried to run away from his own fate, one has not even a year to live, one doesn't know of anything, one now met the destiny of having to be used for other external purposes for his whole life, and one is treated like a ragged toy, beaten up and thrown here and there. And are you telling me Rasiel," The man – Byakuran, growled. "To possibly give them mercy and give up on making their hopes completely _shatter_?"

"Certainly not, sir." Rasiel bowed, as Byakuran forced a smile on his face. He opened his mouth again to speak. "Find them. I don't care how much money I would need to use, I don't care how long it would take. Find them, and teach them a lesson. Especially the ones that are directly under our allied Famiglia's care, as those ones are easier to punish." Byakuran chuckled like a maniac, as Rasiel just stood there. "I will teach them that their life is over. That once they share the blood of the Vongola Famiglia, they can't escape from me. _Ever." _

Suddenly, the door slammed open, revealing a woman with a afro, who was wearing a white uniform. "Byakuran-sama, it seems like Irie has found out the last place the kids disappeared." The woman said, as Byakuran's eyes widened in excitement.

"What did Sho-chan say?" Byakuran questioned, as the woman hesitated, until she opened her mouth to speak. "Um, sir, the thing is… it seems to be that they were transported to another dimension – or possibly another time period. They all disappeared around the same time, with only a few minutes of time gaps or for some, none at all. The cause of all this seems to be the invention that the Bovino Famiglia made a few years ago – the 10 year bazooka… but I think someone upgraded it into something totally new, so that the user can transport to even different dimensions."

Byakuran didn't say anything for a while, until he licked his lips, his expression dark and filled with lust.

"Catch them. Bring them back to this world." Byakuran said quietly, as the female – namely Iris Hepburn – frowned, narrowing her eyes. "But Byakuran-sama, it would at least take a month to fully figure out their locations, and create a copy of the ten year bazooka. We do have Spanner, but I am not sure-"

"Iris." Byakuran said forcefully, as the female paused, as Rasiel stared at his boss, expressionless. "I told you," Byakuran looked up, glaring at the woman. "To go and catch them and bring them back to me. Like I am trying to improvise," the male clucked his tongue. "I don't care how much money I will need to spend, I don't care how long it will take. Bring. Them. Back." Byakuran growled, as Iris and Rasiel nodded and exited the room as fast as they could.

Byakuran sighed, clucking his tongue as he stared up at the ceiling of his office. He smirked.

_The cursed children of Vongola… sorry, but I can't let you go that easily… at least, not until I shatter your hopes and identity._

_Completely._

**End of chapter.**

**Hi guys. How was this chapter? I hope it wasn't too rushed. So… I tried my best to portray the current state of the relationship between the adults and the children. Usually in other stories, they make the children and adults get along right away, but in this story I wanted to show you guys the character development of each of the children and adults. I hope it isn't making any of you guys sleep while reading this because of the slow pace.**

**Well, originally Byakuran was supposed to appear a little later, but I just decided to make him stand on stage a little earlier because nothing seemed to be a problem with that idea. You will figure out about the connection between the Vongola Famiglia and Byakuran later on, and his reason for wanting to break the kids so much. You need to remember – he wants to 'break' them, but he never says he wants to kill them. Hm…**

**Anyways, my replies to all the helpful reviews.**

**Zhizn214 – Thank you very much. Your review encourages me while writing. **

**Sico1324 – I might not be able to show you those 'people' ripping apart for real, but I might write a similar scene. Thanks for being passionate about the characters.**

**Urara S. H. – I am glad you like my story. Thanks.**

**Guest – making Hayato and Lambo have a brotherly bond was just what I remembered about Reborn saying so in the actual anime. Thank you very much for taking such interest in the plot and characters.**

**Chio 'No' Akuma – Tsuna doesn't play a major role yet, but he will soon. Thanks for supporting this story.**

**Natsu Yuuki – I thank all my reviewers for all their encouragement towards this story, including you. I am glad you're thankful about the update though.**

**Anyways, thanks for the continuous support. I will update as soon as I can, but with school opening again, I don't know if I will manage a readable length. Please be patient with me.**

**~Rica~**


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_**16XX, MAY 16**__**TH**__**, DAY 7…**_

"Like I told you, I'm _not_ going to tell you!"

"It can't be _that _bad to tell us anything! You guys have been here for one week, and we know absolutely nothing about you kids except for the fact that you're all really either shy or too prideful and stubborn for your own good." G growled, as Gokudera glared at him. He could easily tell that by the stubborn kids, G meant him, Mukuro, Lambo, and Hibari. Lambo was actually not that stubborn as the elder 3, but Giotto said that it was better for him to be categorized as stubborn because 'shy' wasn't the word that suited him any better.

"It's not that it's bad, it's just…" Yamamoto trailed off, trying to think of a legitimate reason. "It's not the right time yet. We… well, at least Tsuna and I aren't one hundred percent sure that you people are trustworthy. We both know what happens when… when you put your trust and faith in someone too fast and too much and…" Yamamoto's expression turned rather sullen and dark. "And when it's all betrayed and trashed at once."

G's expression softened, as he groaned and rubbed the back of his neck. He glanced at Giotto, hoping he would give a wise response, but his best friend seemed to be troubled with the existence of the kids already. "Then can you at least tell us a hint why you don't trust people so much? It doesn't need to be something specific. It can be something brief and rough, and just… a few words." Asari suggested. "Because we told you almost everything we could at the moment. It's been a week already and… we feel like you didn't tell us anything." The rain guardian replied, as the kids glanced at each other. Some looked confused, some looked conflicted with the situation.

"Why do you want to know about us in the first place?" Mukuro questioned silently, his expression uncomfortable as he opened and clenched his fists momentarily. Daemon noticed that Mukuro often did so when he was feeling anxious, or either nervous. "We're just… _ordinary _kids from the future, that have no relations to you people whatsoever. We each live in different time periods of a big gap of 400 years. But why," he paused, "Do you want to know about our background so much?"

_No relations? Not really… all our blood is downright in all of you._ Lampo thought quietly, but didn't say anything – firstly because he knew better than to present panic and mass confusion to the already nervous kids with his own mouth, secondly because he knew Giotto's reaction wouldn't be very pleasant to see, and lastly because he held pity too – as a pretty normal human being – against the kids, who obviously found difficulty in harmonizing successfully with others in cases of communication. _I can't say anything because I don't understand how they feel, but maybe… _he glanced side wards at G and Giotto, and then shook his head. _That's not my thing to deal with. I just need to… I just need to help the others in getting along with one another, like Giotto told us the other day in the Meeting room._

_**FLASHBACK… (3 DAYS AGO, 16XX MAY 13**__**TH**__**)**_

"_Don't rush things and try to understand… eh." Knuckle nodded a little as he repeated Giotto's idea. "I agree with that. The kids definitely aren't in the mental condition to be forced into a bombard of questions or personal interrogations. Well, we shouldn't put our grandchildren into an Interrogation Room in the first place. I am afraid of God's punishment that will hit us in the future." Knuckle said with a serious expression, as G silently reminded himself again – that despite the energetic personality, the boxer – well, former boxer, was indeed a priest._

"_Mental condition… yes, you're right. Those kids all each fear something. I can tell by the looks they always seem to put on habitually, and the feelings that show in their eyes. As they're still kids and still young, despite the fact that they do seem to know the pressure this world gives to humans, and they probably might've experienced it in various ways – they are still amateurs at hiding their emotions professionally like adults. Kids are honest with feelings…" Daemon thought carefully, trailing off as he reminded himself of Mukuro, Hibari, and Gokudera. "Except some." He concluded._

"_You were always good at reading people, Daemon…" Giotto scanned the room for a while. "And Alaude. I have my Hyper Intuition, but that is different from the natural talent or abilities of being able to read though someone. I'll need your support from now on, my fellow mist and cloud guardians." Giotto intoned – and Daemon and Alaude couldn't even gain a chance to retort because of the finality in their boss' voice. In Daemon's case, he had no choice, and for Alaude, after acknowledging Giotto's strength, he was fairly loyal to blonde so he didn't mind. _

"_G, since you're the most brash one vocally in this very lot-"_

"_Hey, hey, is that supposed to be an insult?" G frowned at Giotto, and Giotto smirked a little playfully as he shook his head._

"_No; in this way, it might be presented to you as a fair compliment. You will hold the position of pressuring the kids a little into truthfully vocalizing their background." G scowled after hearing this, and Giotto also sighed, narrowing his eyes. "It's painful for me too, to say this with my own mouth. I don't want to force them into telling us anything, really. I sort of know what it is to feel like to be in the exact same position too. I am guessing you're feeling discomforted because you also know the feeling, G; and of course I don't want the kids to experience the same thing. Especially when they are our descendants." Slightly whispering the last sentence, Giotto supported his chin with the palm of his right hand as he continued._

"_However, we can't just wait like this – wait and do nothing until they tell us. You saw them. All of you saw them and noticed almost immediately – that these kids would be hard to convince. Some might look easy – but in reality, you all know that it wouldn't be – you should all know by observing them for these past few days." Giotto paused, inhaling a deep breath. "Sometimes we know some people didn't do anything wrong, and we know that they don't deserve something that was done maybe in a cruel way to them. However, even if we know they didn't do anything wrong, we need firm evidence that they didn't. Basically because our feelings aren't enough – and what we saw isn't enough. That's why we need to question the person and pressure them – so that we finally know and have confidence that this person doesn't deserve what they were given. This is the exact same situation." Giotto said, as a few in the room nodded unconsciously by the persuasive remark of their boss._

"_Right. So you're saying we need to approach them first, instead of waiting for them to come to us." Asari stated, and Giotto nodded at the comment of understatement by his rain guardian._

"_Yes. That is why Alaude, Daemon, and I are going to observe the kids carefully and what they tell us as G pressures them – of course, carefully – into vocalizing their thoughts. Of course, I would tell you guys in private to explain what I see through them with my Hyper Intuition – and what is the truth – because some of them might lie in a fluent manner towards us." Giotto responded, as Lampo opened his mouth._

"_And I am assuming that we all have our own respective roles, just like Alaude, Daemon, and G do?" Lampo questioned, as Giotto smiled a little at the lightning guardian. The blonde was quite glad that all his guardians were willing to cooperate. Of course, Giotto knew that the guardians were all rather feeling responsible in a way – including himself – because it was _their _descendants. _

"_I was about to explain that part, Lampo." Giotto glanced at his leftover guardians, and nodded slightly. "Asari and Knuckle – I'm assigning you the role of trying to approach the kids in a different way – I'd say a friendly manner. I am giving you this role because you two – well, are basically the sun and rain guardians. You support and calm the family. I know you're the best at dealing with kids, and with your personality, you will probably be able to connect with the kids very fast. Of course, in about… what, a week from now on? Elena would be coming back – and I will explain what she'll need to do. Hopefully she will become a mother figure of the kids while they're here."_

"_And Lampo?" Daemon asked, tilting his head to the side. Giotto stared at Lampo intently for a while, and the slowly spoke._

"_Lampo will support Asari, Knuckle, and Elena when she comes back from her trip – into getting along with the kids."_

"_Eh, me? But-"_

"_I know you don't get along with kids, and you don't like them either." Giotto responded softly, as Lampo didn't say anything. "But you just need to help Knuckle and Asari or even Elena when they're not available. There are 3 of them and there are 8 kids to connect with. You might not be the best one when dealing with kids, but surely you're better than G, Daemon, or Alaude." Giotto remarked, as the 3 flinched. It was true, though none of them wanted to admit the said fact. Lampo frowned a little, and then pursed his lips together in a thin line, as if he was thinking about it. Giotto waited patiently for the answer._

_Finally, the neon-green haired male sighed lightly. "… I understand." He averted his eyes to the ground, grumbling a little, as Giotto smiled and nodded. "Thank you for helping Lampo. I'm glad you're my lightning guardian." Lampo softened at this. He couldn't stay grouchy for long in front of Giotto. Nobody could. Not even Daemon or Alaude. _

"_Remember – you in particular G, because really you have the most difficult and sensitive role to deal with – we should never hurt them – mentally or definitely not physically – than they already are. Those kids are broken. If I could find out who it was that did such an grotesque action to mere youngsters like them…" Giotto scowled, gritting his teeth. "I would make them regret that they were ever born. I'm definitely not saying this just because those kids are our descendants – but the words of justice. Not the cleanest justice, but…" Giotto trailed. "That's how we humans are, anyways."_

"_Though, it triggers my curiosity," Daemon started silently, "You should all remember that when all of those kids first appeared, they all held injuries. Big or small, serious or not – nonetheless, they were all some sort of injuries. Obviously not done by themselves. That can only mean there is a separate abuser. I am guessing some might just be scrapes when they were running or around but…" Daemon looked at the ceiling for a while. "I wonder why human beings are so selfish. For their own survival, or for their own illegitimate reasons, they hurt the innocent others surrounding them." Hearing the mist guardian's words, the cloud guardian that was silent throughout the whole session opened his own mouth as well._

"_Herbivores. It's the way they live on in their own world. And don't forget what that old herbivore (Talbot) said to us. Those… kids," Alaude said with small difficulty, pulling down the urge to call them herbivores. "Suffered because of the unseen blood flowing inside them. Vongola's blood." The platinum blonde commented. The others were pretty sure that those were probably one of the longest sentences that Alaude ever said in his whole time staying with them._

"_Vongola's blood…" Asari sighed. "Who could possibly be after the people who share Vongola's blood?" The room fell silent at the rain guardian's mysterious question._

"_Really," Giotto said, "I don't want to know."_

_**END OF FLASHBACK…**_

Mukuro sighed as he walked down the long corridor that showed almost no end. He had exited the room after G questioned them carefully. Usually he would venture the mansion with Chrome, but this time he wanted to be alone. Mukuro stopped as he remembered what he told the grumpy male once he asked them for hints.

"_You want a hint?" The boy sneered. "Well, here's the hint. Everyone here – all of us here – were terrorized and tortured endlessly till now. Just because of something that we couldn't do anything about – something that was beyond our control – something that everyone blamed us for it, even though we didn't do anything. I can't be sure about the others here, but I will speak for them anyways." Mukuro paused. "You adults don't know what it is like – not being able to escape your destiny at all. The fate that holds you back from freedom, and the blood that flows in your body – a blood that everyone say is cursed and should be discriminated. When I don't even have a single idea – what's that blood they keep on talking about." Mukuro said breathlessly. He walked past the adults as he opened the doorknob. Then he turned back, glaring at every one of them standing in the room. Giotto stared, knowing what Mukuro was talking about. The Unknown Blood flowing inside the boy. Vongola's blood. Mukuro spoke. _

"_Do you people understand that?"_

Mukuro sighed heavily, leaning on the wall nearby with mixed feelings. He knew he was being unhelpful, stubborn, and well, _cocky. _In a way, he was also fully aware that those people were adults – and they should know better about the world than him. He clenched his fists, and wiped his palms on his pants again, sweat forming in his hands.

_I didn't do anything wrong. It's not my fault that I can't trust people. I'll never trust anyone. Adults are horrible. _Then Mukuro paused, remembering the thing that Talbot said – that if they wished, they could go back to future. _I don't want to go back there. Obviously. _Mukuro shrugged a little, remembering the painful experiments done on him. _But… I don't want to stay here either. _Mukuro sighed, as he stood up straight again and regained his composure. Then he continued to walk down the corridor, several thoughts interfering one another at once.

Suddenly, Mukuro scowled as he whipped back, sensing another present existence. He stopped and frowned, noticing that it was Hibari.

"Isn't it the skylark. What business do you have with me?" He forced a mysterious smile, as Hibari remained silent for the first few seconds, expressionless.

"I have something to share with you. And I'm only sharing it with you, because for now, the only other reliable – and well, the herbivore I know best of is you." Mukuro raised his eyebrows. He knew Hibari was serious – because or else he would never be saying that to Mukuro. Mukuro also dropped his smile and opened his mouth.

"You found out something, didn't you. From all that journeys to the village, I suppose? Since you do know some Italian, from staying with the Estraneo. So let me listen to you… what is it?" The small male illusionist tilted his head to the side. Hibari leaned on the wall, as he spoke.

"The thing about this place. Apparently called…" Hibari hesitated. "The Vongola mansion. You should know that, since we know a well amount of information about this Famiglia."

"Yes, but that's not very surprising, is it?"

Hibari closed his eyes. "What will you say, herbivore… if there is a small song about the Cursed Blood of the Vongola?"

Mukuro frowned.

"Explain."

**MEANWHILE, WITH GOKUDERA…**

Gokudera was the only one still remaining in the room after the ruckus created by Mukuro. The adults left one by one, excusing themselves. Gokudera could easily tell that they were going off for another 'meeting' or something – something that he didn't need to care about. Hibari left soon after, after he looked like he was thinking about some other matter, and Yamamoto and Tsuna exited the room, saying they will go play catch in the yards. Ryohei and Chrome decided to join, since they had nothing to do, and Lambo was also lured into playing the childish game. Well, Lambo was still a little kid after all.

Gokudera stared at the window. He looked out and saw the 4 kids playing and running around the yards, screaming joyfully. For once, it seemed peaceful – and nothing seemed to be worrisome. Just looking at them would make anyone feel like nothing wrong was about to happen. However, Gokudera was different. He was currently stressing himself out with a melody that kept on bothering him endlessly.

_Hints… of my family… my background… huh. _Gokudera thought, as he sat down, hugging his knees. _Now that I think about it… I don't exactly have good memories about any of them. Not even father, or Bianchi… _then his eyes widened, as he reminded himself of his mother.

"_Hayato!"_

The kind voice that called his name, the gentle hands that held his close. The only considerate one that he remembered about his childhood. The delicate fingers that played the piano, and the high but smooth voice that sang along with the tune. Gokudera's eyes widened as he remembered the unforgettable and rather nostalgic melody that kept on replaying in his head. He finally remembered what it was.

_**FLASHBACK… **_

"_There are 8 lonely clams, 8 lonely clams. The lonely 8 that did no wrong, but were tainted black and shattered by the strong. The powerful seas, the fearsome waves, O', how fearsome they were. The lonely 8 clams, the lonely 8 clams. They break, they shatter, they cry, and fight together – but O', the fearsome waves – too strong, too vicious, too merciless… the storms arise, and the skies open again, and the fierce wind stops, O', the time of judgment and justice is here. A rainbow – a beautiful rainbow appears in front, and the lonely 8 clams are no longer black… O', the lonely 8 clams, the lonely 8 clams… now fearless and friendly."_

"_It's a beautiful song, don't you think, Hayato? It's a very old song from hundreds of years ago, in Italy." The woman explains, as she finished the song. The boy simply nods, as his mother pats him on the head._

"_Though mother," the young Gokudera spoke up, as the woman glanced at her son. "What happened to the sea afterwards?" His mother blinked, and the smiled softly as she put an arm around her son._

"_I don't know Hayato, but I think… that it would've probably went back to it's calm and soothing self. The sea can be scary, but usually it's a very pretty and friendly thing." The woman replied, as her son frowned at her, not understanding the meaning of her words very much._

"_The sea, never becomes violent without a reason, after all."_

_**END OF FLASHBACK…**_

"The 8 lonely clams, the violent sea, and the rainbow of justice…" the boy mumbled under his breath, his voice muffled as his face was covered by his arm which he was leaning on.

"Could it be…"

**MEANWHILE, WITH THE OTHER KIDS…**

"Ne, Lambo, is Gokudera… usually that intense?" Yamamoto asked, panting. They were all lying down on the damp grass after running around. Lambo hummed a little as he shook his head.

"Haya-nii is… well, usually very composed. Whenever he was with me, he would always be the calm and patient one that took care of me. He was strict about me talking to other unknown adults, and he never let me wander off alone. He would tell me to stay in a location until he would come back – and after a while he would come back with stuff like matches, newspaper, some twigs, and usually some trashed and leftover food. On lucky days there would be takoyaki thrown away by tourists, on normal days we would have something like half-eaten fish, on unlucky days we will just eat a chip or two, or even nothing at all."

None of them said anything for a while. "That must've been hard for you to the extreme." Ryohei nodded, as Lambo's eyes widened. He felt… happy. It was a feeling he never had before. He was happy that someone understood him – and someone felt sorry for him. Nobody did – nobody except Gokudera. Gokudera was the only person he ever knew that would understand his situation, and take care of him like a real parent would. Really, Lambo wasn't sure what a parent would normally do to their children, because he never had any, but he was sure they would be something similar to Gokudera. Taking care of him, and furthermore, loving him. Lambo liked that – parents.

"It must be nice to have a family. Lambo-sama never had any." Lambo said, his small childish way of talking coming back to him.

"Not… exactly." Chrome said bitterly, her soft voice carried by the wind. "No… actually, never mind. Yes, it would be nice to have parents… to have friendly parents that would do anything for you. Parents that would even sacrifice themselves for your survival." The girl forced a weak smile. Yamamoto noticed the slight fakeness that was trying to cover her feelings.

"Mm… I don't know about nice parents, really…" Tsuna mumbled a little. "All my foster parents didn't like me. I don't remember doing anything bad to them though – but they would always say-"

"Tsuna." Yamamoto said softly. "Let's not talk about that. It wasn't your fault. It was their fault for not noticing and realizing their own mistakes. You didn't deserve it. You know that."

"I… guess." Tsuna said, but he sounded unsure.

"I bet Sawada, you did nothing wrong to the extreme. I have a feeling that those people were wrong." Ryohei encouraged as well, though he didn't have a single clue what Tsuna went through – being one of the oldest among the children, the small boxer kind of grew that abilities of being able read situations and meanings behind words. Of course, he wasn't as good as Mukuro and Hibari, but he did know how.

"It's odd, isn't it? It's already been a week since we met each other, and yet this is our first time properly talking to one another like this." Yamamoto chuckled. "Though, none of you sound as intense as the other 3 up there."

"Mm. I think we'll get along."

Comfortable silence fell over the youngsters, as the afternoon breeze swept over them.

"Ne… I'm hungry." Lambo said quietly, as his stomach rumbled.

The kids paused, as they laughed all over again.

**WITH THE ADULTS, BACK AT THE MEETING ROOM…**

"'Do you understand'… well, that was rather unexpected." Daemon was the first one to open his mouth and speak. As it was his descendant, he couldn't help but feel rather discomforted by the words – and for some reason, he felt guilty – because he indeed could _not _relate with the boy. He had no clue what the boy could've been through. He had to admit, the boy was good at hiding his emotions and controlling his words. It almost sounds as if he is at the verge of exploding and blurting out everything – but manages to control his mental state, and keeps his propositions at a steady rate. For a mere… what, 12 year old? That was rather impressive.

"My Hyper Intuition couldn't catch anything in particular. Disappointing, but what I'm sure of from today, is that the one with the most unstable mental state is Mukuro." Giotto said, as some put on rather surprised looks.

"Really? He seemed to be rather well composed and controlled in my opinion." Asari frowned. "To me, Gokudera-kun seemed to be the most anxious one among the lot. Actually, all the stubborn kids seem to be nervous in a way." All the adults nodded.

"Well, there was always a saying that stubborn ones act the way they do because they are afraid that they would fall down, helpless, when they put down that façade. And that's also why they are the easiest ones to show their real personality." Knuckle shrugged, as Giotto tapped his finger on the table.

"I can't be so sure, actually, but I am guessing that Hibari-kun and Mukuro-kun's reason for being like that is all related to this so called Lab they're talking about. Other than that, I never saw those two discussing about something else." Asari nodded, as Lampo hummed in the corner, sucking on a sugar candy.

"How about the other ones? The younger ones I mean. Including Ryohei, though he is the same age as Hibari and Mukuro." The lightning guardian tilted his head to the side, as Giotto looked up to answer.

"The younger ones, to my surprise, are way harder to read."

"Nufufu… that I will have to agree with. They're hiding those wicked secrets behind those cute smiles."

Giotto sighed heavily. G smirked, as he spoke.

"Well, well, lets not become so discouraged. Remember? If there's a hard question on a test, then don't waste your time on that one – move onto the next one. You can come back to it afterwards. We'll face the stubborn kids first – as they do seem easier to read. And they possess a lot of knowledge, compared to the other ones. I can tell."

Giotto nodded. "Then that's the plan."

**End of chapter.**

**Chapter 4 done. I could get it completed fast because well, I did all of it in the plane except this Author's Note. But anyways.**

**For now, I decided that Mukuro, Hibari, and Gokudera would get their spotlight first on stage, because their pasts are quite easy to explain than other kids. And also, you'll get to know better, but they have unstable mental conditions like Giotto said. I think some of you might know why Mukuro the most unstable mental state – but if you don't, that would be introduced soon.**

**If some of you think this story is rather too serious when it's only the beginning – that is because I don't plan on putting in any Daily Life chapters yet. Maybe… a few distant chapters later. But not now. I need to get done with all their stories – and I really want to get it done fast… so yeah.**

**Lastly, I am finally starting to make some of them act friendly to one another – and you may all notice that those are all the kids that are categorized as the kids that are open, but the hardest to read overall. That will also be explained later on.**

**In the next chapter, you will get a glimpse of Mukuro's past, and also… uh, the one and only villain of this story, Byakuran. **

**Replies:**

**Silvermoon170 – I grew a liking to realistic stories filled with angst nowadays, so I decided I would try one. I am glad you like it.**

**Knightcross – I don't really think Tsuna will get like, a major, major role in this story. In other words, the other characters would all be as important as him – and no one is going to stand out dramatically. Thanks for the review.**

**Guest 1 – Yes, awesome suspense. Thank you.**

**Guest 2 – Gokudera and Tsuna's connection would be explained in various chapters. Thanks.**

**Anonymous – I think I know who you are… but I won't say anything, because I may be wrong. But thanks for the encouragement.**

**VongolAddiction – here's your update. I hope you enjoyed it.**

**Alexia Hellsing – Yay, another encouraging review! I think their pasts will be all explained around chapter 10 or before, as I planned this story to be somewhere around less than 25 chapters… but well, I don't know. Thanks.**

**AngeliqueSora – You would be surprised if you get to know the truth. Thanks for the review.**

**Zhizn214 – thanks for the encouragement. I will keep your words in mind.**

**Makubex000 – Well, the title of this story is Mending Heart after all. Thanks for the review.**

**Natsu Yuuki – Here's the update. I hope you liked it.**

**See you later, thanks for the support.**

**~Rica~**


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

_**16XX, MAY 19**__**TH**__**, DAY 10…**_

_Where… am I? A cave? A hole? No, is this another experiment… no, I don't want this… I should be in the past so why-_

"_Onii-chan!"_

'_Who…?'_

"_Onii-chan, you said you were going to play with me today!"_

'_Who is she…? A girl… is she talking to me?'_

_The scenery changed as it blurred slightly, showing the crowded area of the Slave Trading Center. It smelled up rotten flesh and blood, dirt piles blocking the path, unknown substances wetting the ground, little kids in chains and handcuffs walking in a row as they were dragged by one buff looking man that pulling them to a certain location, which the kids didn't know of._

"_Onii-chan? Where are we going?"_

_Mukuro looked at the girl and his younger self, bewildered by the sight. He couldn't recognize the girl at all. She looked like him – there was no doubt in that. Did he have a long lost sister? Why couldn't he remember her?_

_His younger self smiled, his expression filled with sorrow and kindness. He whispered something that Mukuro couldn't hear of as a reply, as the girl stared up at him, looking innocent as Mukuro patted her head. This time, the scene changed again – it was still at the Trading Center, but this time they were locked up in small rooms – rooms where slaves that couldn't be sold for the day were kept. In the room, around 10 kids were barely being able to sit down in a comfortable position, as Mukuro saw himself sulking with the girl in the corner._

_Suddenly, everything went silent, as the door of the room slammed opened and the girl was roughly dragged by her arm by a man in a black suit, leaving the younger Mukuro crying her name, as the girl desperately tried to escape the strong arms – though both of their efforts turned out wasted. _

"_No…"_

"NO!" Mukuro yelled out, as he sat up on his bed abruptly, his face covered with small droplets of tears and cold sweat. He groaned a little, after realizing it was nothing but a mere dream. He pulled his blanket back over his head, trying to block out the weird noises that were bothering him, and the face of that crying girl that looked eerily similar as him.

His shoulders unconsciously hunched up, as he heard footsteps approaching his room. He clenched his fists as his breathing went uneven, as he shut his eyes closed and tried to calm down. He hoped that it was no one. He really hoped nobody heard his scream, and it was simply just Giordano, the butler of the mansion, passing by.

The door creaked open slightly, as a worried voice called his name with uncertainty. "Mukuro?" It was Daemon. Mukuro didn't say anything in response, though he couldn't help but feel slightly relieved in a sense. "Are you feeling alright?" Daemon questioned, a frown plastered over his face as he stared at the boy under the sheets in concern.

"I'm fine. Go away." Mukuro said shortly, as Daemon narrowed his eyebrows in concern. "Were you having a nightmare or something?" Daemon asked, as Mukuro opened his eyes and glared at Daemon, though he knew that since he was under the sheets, Daemon couldn't see his expression. "No." Mukuro replied, as Daemon scowled a little, as he started to close the door. "Alright then. I was just wondering because…" Daemon trailed off. _Because of that terrifying mist flames that were suddenly unleashed. It was definitely Mukuro's, but is it possible for such a young boy to possess such powerful mist flames? Well, he is my descendant but… _Daemon's thoughts were interfered quietly by Mukuro's request. "Can you go now?" The boy whispered a little, as Daemon nodded and closed the door.

The mist guardian yawned, as he walked down the dark corridor again, the small candle dimly lighting the vicinity also with small warmth. Daemon rubbed the back of his neck a bit as he glanced at the door to Mukuro's room again, and then just shook his head and turned away. The mist guardian noticed that he indeed looked similar to Mukuro when he put his hair down at night – if he changed his hairstyle to Mukuro's they would possibly look horribly alike.

The mist guardian continued to walk, his long sleeved button down shirt hanging loose on his shoulders, and his black silk pants a little too long for him as they got dragged on the floor as he was walking bare foot.

"Daemon." The mist guardian almost dropped the candle in surprise, as he balanced back into the holder in his hand. He scowled and turned back at the person who called his name so suddenly without presence, and attempted to take a small revenge by summoning his illusions, until he noticed that it was Giotto and the rest of the guardians. Daemon slightly wondered – firstly, why were all the Vongola guardians awake at such a time, secondly, why couldn't he notice their presence when they were right behind him, and lastly, why were they all looking so confused and concerned? Daemon really couldn't understand what was possibly going on.

"Sorry if we surprised you. We just heard your voice and I think one of the kids screamed a little, yes? Or more like it sounded like a shout to me. Was it Mukuro?" Giotto questioned, and Daemon hesitated a little, before nodding once. Giotto didn't say anything for a while, as he observed his mist guardian very closely. The blonde smirked as he opened his mouth again. "You were worried, weren't you, Daemon?" Daemon glared at his boss as he tried to retort, but closed his mouth again, remembering the fact that the kids were asleep, and he needed to keep his voice down. "I just went to check on him because…" Daemon paused, thinking whether he should tell Giotto about the mist flames or not. He decided to go against the idea, because he wanted to keep it a secret at the moment. Of course, Giotto would notice with his Intuition, but it was worth it. "Because I was just curious what got into the cold lad."

G snorted. "Yeah, right. That's why you couldn't even sense us approaching you just now, and couldn't hear us calling you like three times before Giotto had to call your name out for the fourth time." Daemon's face reddened a little in embarrassment as he gripped the handle of his holder a little tighter.

_He's hiding something… but well, I guess I will leave it… Mukuro isn't my descendant to take care of, and… _Giotto smiled slightly as he heard G and Daemon argue in whispers. _He seems to be doing fine with them. Though Mukuro can be a little worrisome, it will be fine, I suppose… And since Elena is coming in 4 days, it'll be fine, I suppose. _

"Well, what exactly did happen to Mukuro-kun?" Asari questioned, and Daemon flinched a little as he averted his eyes elsewhere, and then mumbled. "He was having… a nightmare. He didn't tell me what it was about, though." Knuckle tilted his head to the side. It was quite odd – because Mukuro didn't seem to be the type to be overwhelmed by mere dreams. But again, Giotto did say that his mental state was rather unpredictable – that they should be keeping an eye on them.

"I'm guessing it has something to do with his so called past?" Lampo shrugged a little, as Giotto thought about this idea a little, considering the idea. In truth, he couldn't but agree more with his Lightning guardian. It was the only option that Mukuro seemed to be bewildered about and feared of – no matter how much he tried to cover the fact up.

"It's probably that. But we'll need observe him more… and of course, the other kids as well – the shouldn't be an exception from our… well, investigation process." Giotto sighed lightly, as Alaude frowned. "Investigation, you say. It's rather like we're just digging up their personal information behind their backs." All the guardians flinched a little awkwardly at the cloud guardian's sharp remark. "You don't need to be too straightforward about it…" Lampo scratched his head nervously.

"I can just see their expressions when they find out who we are to them, and what we are doing right now in order to find out about their identity. It's really hard to read them, so the only way is to observe their actions a little or to eavesdrop on what some of the knowledgeable ones are talking about, but even that is way more challenging than I thought." G folded his arms as he leaned on the wall.

"They are kids after all. People say kids are rather easy to read, but didn't you hear? Some adults say that kids are way more better than kids at hiding their feelings, they are sometimes exceptionally skilled at lying, and are way more cunning that normal adults think they can be." Daemon responded, repeating what his friend said to him when he was young.

"It makes it harder to find out about them and approach them when they're blocking us out in such a manner. Especially when some are just making it so obvious that they are going through a serious problem and matter, but they don't try to share it to anyone else except themselves." Giotto nodded, as he looked up at his guardians.

"Let's talk about this tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? What are we going to do tomorrow?"

"We have something ask Hibari."

**THE NEXT DAY, DAY 11…**

Giotto was the first one to wake up in the morning again, as he walked down to the dining room soon after. Breakfast was completed in silence, the kids putting on different expressions. Some seemed to be more used to the routine, looking comfortable the way they were staying. Mukuro looked tired, his face a little pale as he played with his food a little, drawing circles on the meat with his fork. Finally, he walked out of the room, after finishing the vegetables but not eating the meat stew. Gokudera sipped a little of the warm broth, and then walked out as well, looking uncomfortable with his surroundings as he disappeared behind the doors. Hibari's seat was empty – as he always went elsewhere during meal times, though his breakfast was always prepared for him.

"I don't know why those three always miss out on meals." Ryohei started very quietly, keeping his voice down. "It's been almost half a month since we arrived here, but they seem to be the only ones violating the daily schedule with their own behavior. Not to mention that they don't even seem to have the intention of growing any closer to the lot." G was slightly surprised at the sharp remark the boy made – being Knuckle's descendant, the boy seemed to be a little more depressed and honest, as well as straightforward. The kids often startled the adults in some ways how they seemed to be so similar to them, yet possessed opposite elements.

Lampo tapped his plate with his fork a little, and then opened his mouth to speak. "It's not even very fresh or new anymore. It's rather sad how they don't try to interact with others except themselves. Almost as if they are attempting to escape from some unknown existence that isn't there, but fails because they think it is indeed there." Giotto noticed it was a pretty specific description, as if the lightning guardian planned through the whole sentence, but didn't say anything in particular.

"It's a shame they miss out on a such a nice meal. It's not like we get to eat these kinds of food every single day." Lambo didn't seem to notice that he used to term 'we', which the Vongola guardians assumed that he was talking about him and Gokudera. The only thing Giotto was aware of those two boys were that they shared a brotherly bond and friendship, and lived on the streets for as long as the younger one could remember. And probably Gokudera lived a few years longer in the location than Lambo did.

Yamamoto nodded at the comment. "I think I would agree with that. Even where me and Tsuna stay don't provide such high quality dishes. Of course, the food over here tastes rather different and odd than what we have in our orphanage, in our time – and since it's traditional Italian food, I have to admit I am not used to the meals they give here yet. But it's still way better than what we have to eat everyday." The boy said, pushing the meat stew into his mouth. Giotto's eyes widened slightly at the new discovery he just made and noticed. _An orphanage… so this means that Tsuna and Yamamoto-kun add to the number of kids who are orphans among our descendants…_ G seemed to be bothered by the fact, so did the other guardians as they threw Giotto uncomfortable expressions.

Taking the chance, Asari decided to dig further into the topic, though with extreme sensitivity and care. "Do you mind telling us a little more about the orphanage, Takeshi?" Yamamoto seemed to contemplate about this certain question thrown at him without rush. The boy's lips tightened at the corners, as he glanced at Tsuna, who was blinking, slowly chewing the food stuffed in his cheeks. _Will it be ok…? No, these people are being honest with themselves. They might care. They might… _Yamamoto sighed lightly, as he looked up again, and spoke carefully, his expression rather serious.

"The orphanage… well, it would be better to start with the specifics. The orphanage me and Tsuna were sent to was located in a deserted area of the current day Japan. Somewhere in Chiba, as far as I know, though I understand that none of you will be aware of where the place is." Yamamoto started, as the other kids just listened, trying to relate. "It was old. The building itself was constructed about 50 years ago, made with rusty wood, looking as if it was about to collapse into a pile of dust. Of course, I didn't meet Tsuna at the orphanage right away – it was about a month later when he arrived." Yamamoto paused, wondering whether he was supposed to continue or not.

"And?" Knuckle tugged on the topic gently, his expression soft and kind. Yamamoto, calmed by the reaction, nodded. "The orphanage, as I expected, was under the hands of a man who didn't really care of what happened to the kids living in the building. He hated wasting his money on the welfare of lost children – saying that when he was young, some orphans didn't even get to be sent to an orphanage or so. The food was rotten and wasn't in the condition to eat at most times, and the water looked polluted. Clean water was provided on Sundays, and the teachers often used the excuse of saying it was too much money to be spent, to feed all kids with good water and food everyday." Giotto twitched a little. He didn't know about the currency or money problems in future Japan – but could it be _that _challenging to provide kids such simple necessities? Surely some bread and water couldn't hurt.

Yamamoto bit his bottom lip, as he clenched his fists a little. The kids glanced at the talking boy nervously – each seemed to be thinking about their own pasts – and the exact same future that was approaching in a rather fearful speed. Ryohei's eyes searched for nothing in particular, as his mind swirled around as if terrible turbulence was about to occur in his head. Chrome stared at Yamamoto, and then the empty seat of Mukuro as she put on a sullen expression. Lambo, who would usually finish all his food on the plate, just traced the last piece of broccoli on his platter, as if he lost the last of his appetite. Tsuna just shivered a little time to time, remembering the poor treatment of the orphanage. He didn't want to return to such a place.

"I think that's enough." Giotto said quietly, observing the negative reaction of the kids. He knew better than to continue with the following topic – he was aware of the fact that if they went any further, the kids wouldn't be able to hold it, and in some cases, some will fall in terror and break. Giotto didn't want to pressure the kids into talking. He knew that doing such a thing would only show a pessimistic outcome, even without his Hyper Intuition. The blonde stood up, and smiled. "You kids should go out and play a little. I think there is going to be no weather problems until noon or so, or that's what Giordano told me. Old people are usually right about those stuff. Just make sure to not go out of the mansion gates, since it's dangerous, alright? I don't know what it would've been like in the future, but Italy isn't one of those countries where kids like you lot should be exposed in the streets without any older accompaniment. Understood?" Giotto grinned a little, as the kids nodded, and then ran out with excited looks plastered over their faces.

Staring at their childish descendants, G smirked and shrugged a little, rubbing the back of his neck with his right hand. "I'm glad that those five still have hope of opening up to us and even possibly recovering. They don't seem to be saturated in depression and tragic thoughts, unlike… the other three." The storm guardian took note, reminding himself that his descendant was one of them. Alaude didn't say anything, as Daemon just averted his eyes elsewhere.

"Let's go up to the library for now. Since the kids seem to be outside, we would be able to talk a little more openly." Giotto suggested, as the guardians made their way out of the dining room and up the wide staircase of their mansion. On their way going up, Lampo noticed Gokudera walking in the hallway alone, looking confused and horrified of something. He thought of approaching the boy, but pushed the thought forcefully to the side, knowing that if he interfered, the situation would worsen in such a way that couldn't be recovered.

Asari's eyes widened a little as he spotted Hibari sitting in the middle of the room, leaning on the bookshelf, reading a book about… it seemed to be a very ancient book written a long time ago – Asari attempted to read the book, as the cover was rather fancy and attractive – it was red velvet, laced with gold and silver around the edges. No title was printed in front or the back, and Asari thought about checking it out for a while, but his attention soon focused elsewhere as he found the book he wanted to read. After that, he never remembered the book again, and never cared less about it. Hibari scowled as he quickly closed the book and pushed it to an empty space in the bookshelf, and stood up, as if he was trying to escape from Giotto and the others.

Seeing this, Giotto opened his mouth, trying to keep the boy in the room. "Hibari-kun, if you won't mind, we would like to talk to you for a bit." _It wasn't my plan to talk to him right now, but I guess it would be fine. _Giotto thought to himself, as Hibari scowled cautiously, thinking of all the possibilities of what the man's intentions were. The boy was rather cunning and quick at reading others, which supported him from falling into invisible traps of new people that he didn't know of. And he was once again prepared to protect himself, and even maybe go against Giotto and the others.

"I do mind, just simply saying." Hibari replied shortly, as he took a step back and then unconsciously glanced back at the book he just put away and bit his lip. Giotto frowned as he noticed the boy's actions, and took a personal note to go through that book later. "I don't like talking to herbi- adults." Hibari replaced his words, reminding himself that Giotto and his guardians weren't exactly weak.

"It's a short matter, and it wouldn't even be about you." G grunted, rolling his eyes, wondering how similar could the boy get to his platinum blonde comrade. "It's about Mukuro – that fellow friend of yours." Hibari glared at the elder man. "We aren't friends of any sort. We just know each other." G shrugged, giving an expression that said: 'This or that, it's the same thing.'

"Would you be able to tell us what the Lab is?" Knuckle asked with little curiosity – he wasn't exactly interested in the specifics of the Lab, but he figured it was an essential piece of information in order to find out a little more about their pasts. Hibari's eyes narrowed a little, as he regretted the fact that he talked about the matter a little too openly with Mukuro. At the time, he easily reached to the decision that the adults wouldn't care, and that's why they discussed about it.

"How is this beneficial to any of you?" Hibari folded his arms, leaning on the smooth wall. Lampo was slightly scared at the resemblance he could spot almost immediately between the boy and Alaude. "Even if I do explain the Lab to you, you wouldn't even be able to understand a single thing what I'm talking about, and as far as I know, it wouldn't help you take a step closer to the growth of your power and strength." Hibari tilted his head to the side, expressionless.

Giotto raised his eyebrows. "Power and strength? What do you mean? I don't think I am comprehending your words as well as you want me to, Hibari." Hibari glared at the blonde as he opened his mouth again. He hated talking and vocalizing his thoughts and feelings so openly, but he knew that he was kind of cornered, and in order to escape, all he could do was to fulfill their hungry desires towards knowledge.

"That's what all adults want and live for. No, more easily phrased – that's what all hungry animals of every generation crave for, isn't it? Wealth, Power, Strength, and being able to be recognized as an existence that can't be destroyed by anything." Hibari paused, and then smirked, as if he was too used to the pattern. "What are you people any different from those beings? The people who want know about the Lab are spread across the whole world. They want the specimens, their inventions, and every single thing the Lab possesses because they know it would be beneficial in some kind of way to them." Hibari stared at Giotto and his guardians. Alaude frowned, noticing that his descendant knew a little too much about the world for his age. "So answer me, Vongola, how is pulling out the information about the Lab beneficial to you?"

Giotto scowled. "You know that we're the Vongola? I am pretty sure we never really mentioned our identity in front of you guys… or did we?" the blonde questioned himself quietly, as Hibari shrugged. "I just do. I know more than you think, Giotto Ieyasu Sawada, the Vongola Primo." The boy replied, as Giotto's eyes widened, as his full name was mentioned. "People say Vongola was originally a vigilante Famiglia that was created in order to protect people… but I don't exactly believe that." Hibari concluded, his voice cold and chilly from beginning to end.

"Then please answer this, Hibari-kun." Giotto started calmly, as Hibari frowned. "Mukuro-kun is also related to the Lab, isn't he?" Hibari replied with mere silence. "Did this Lab… happen to destroy his mental state? Or forced something upon him that brought him to his current unstable condition?" Giotto asked, and Hibari seemed to be thinking whether he was supposed to explain this or not. Finally, he reached a firm decision.

"I wouldn't expose the pineapple's past with my own mouth. It's not like I owe him or anything, but it's also true that it isn't my position to tell his life story. That's what he has to do." Hibari responded, which slightly confused the guardians. "However, even though that pineapple does explain something to you lot, there is a possibility that he isn't explaining the 'truth'. Of course, the pineapple will think that is the truth for his case, because that's what has been tattooed inside his head due to the scientists. And I know all the truths to all the lies he's been told. That's all I will say for now." Hibari shrugged, as Giotto frowned. He noticed that Hibari seemed to be very knowledgeable in the case of Mukuro's past – in fact, from what he had just said, he seemed to know more about it than Mukuro himself.

"Can you might as well give us a small hint?" Daemon pleaded, as Hibari stopped and then looked up at the man. Then he shrugged, decided that it wouldn't hurt. "The pineapple has a family member who is still alive. I'm pretty sure his parents sold him to a Slave Trading Center with his sibling because they were short on money, and furthermore, they didn't care about the welfare or their own kids. Mukuro stayed with his sibling for a while, until the latter was sold first, and Mukuro was left alone – and then soon after sold to the Lab. As far as I know, the Lab brainwashed Mukuro a little, erasing a part of his memories, including the memory about his sibling." Hibari then continued to walk away, as G frowned.

"How do you know so much about him?"

Hibari paused for a while. And then murmured something.

"It's my job."

Then he walked away again.

**MEANWHILE, IN THE FUTURE…**

"Is the bazooka done yet?" Byakuran urged impatiently, as his subordinates put on different expressions – mostly looking pained by the fact that they needed to deal with this for a little more than half a month, until the material was ready to be used. "Sho-chan and Span-chan are taking too long for their own good… there is a reason they were scouted and chosen as the technicians of my Famiglia and yet-"

"Please, calm down Byakuran-sama." Gingerbread commented, his voice calm and soothing. His eyes were covered with a white uniform cap, as Byakuran glared at the boy. "Irie and Spanner are trying their best to complete the bazooka in the satisfactory time, Byakuran-sama. You can't order them to do the impossible." Gingerbread nodded, as Byakuran growled a little.

Rasiel, who has been listening carefully next to the two, pushed into the conversation to support Gingerbread. "That is right, Byakuran-sama. I know that you want the descendants of Vongola back into your hands as fast as possible, and I can totally relate and understand your feelings right now." The male smirked a little. "However, Byakuran-sama, how nice will it be? The longer the time they would get to rest in peace, the more they will heal again. Imagine the thrill and fun, Byakuran-sama! What's the fun in breaking dolls that are already broken? It would be more suspenseful and exciting if you gain the chance to break their hopes completely once again, just after they are healed. Show them that you are the king of everything, Byakuran-sama." Rasiel used the best of his persuasive vocabulary, calming down the boss. Fortunately, his cunning methods worked magically, and Byakuran looked up at the ceiling with a small smile.

"Yes, Rasiel, thank you for reminding me of the fun. Ah, breaking dolls, you said? That's so perfectly phrased that I can't possibly replace the words with my own." Byakuran spread his hand open, staring into his palm as he squeezed them, and laughed hysterically for a while. He stopped and eased down, as he gazed out the window and viewed the tall buildings and the busy roads that were filled with people beneath. Adults were heading out for work, and the kids were walking to school. _Do you blame me for not allowing those kids happiness like other kids their age, father? Those innocent kids who have done nothing wrong to gain my hate – and couldn't do anything about the blood flowing restlessly inside their small and fragile bodies? _The man thought as he took a closer look at the view outside.

_However father, you have failed to become a father to me, a role model I could follow. You didn't give me the royal seat of the Vongola Decimo, when I was your son – I was the son – the genius and intelligent son of Vongola Nono. You were the one that rejected me father, saying that I didn't have the right to become Vongola's next boss. Instead, you claimed that… that small brunette would receive the throne. _Byakuran closed his eyes. _You rejected me father, you ignored my existence, and this will be my reply to your actions._

_Cry in vain, the kids of Vongola._

**End of chapter.**

**Ok, so yes, a lot is happening at the very final portion of this chapter. For those who are confused, then here is the simplest explanation I can provide to you. Byakuran is the blood-related son of Vongola Nono, but was rejected by his father, and the seat of the Vongola Decimo that would originally go to him, was passed to Tsuna instead. Byakuran, enraged by this, plans a rebellion and creates a Famiglia of his own, which is the Millefiore Famiglia. He succeeds in almost destroying the Vongola, and now he plans to exterminate the next generation of Vongola Decimo and his soon-to-be guardians. However, Byakuran's story wouldn't end here. And yes, Byakuran does have series of episodes about his past that would be explained further throughout the story.**

**A little about the kids' pasts were revealed too; Mukuro, Yamamoto, Tsuna, and Hibari, to be specific. Hibari's words were rather confusing, and I understand, but this will explained later as well. I will be having fun reading your reviews as you guys try to predict what Hibari's 'job' is today, I suppose.**

**Replies:**

**VongolAddiction – Thank you; it's nice to hear that I'm doing well as an author.**

**Zhizn214 – Ah, I see, I understand – it did leave people hanging. Was this chapter satisfactory though? I know that my chapters leave everything hanging, but I try my best to resolve some bothersome issues. However for now, I guess I can't help it. Thank you, though.**

**Natsu Yuuki – I hope I can write a scene where Gokudera gets along with the others soon as well. Thanks for the encouragement.**

**Alexia Hellsing – Haha, I can relate – I like Hibari and Mukuro too. Maybe that's why I am starting with their pasts first… well, it's also for the flow of the story, so well, I am glad you like it.**

**Knightcross – My plan is to get Hibari and Mukuro and Gokudera to get closer to each other first, yes. They will blend in soon as well, and I'm glad that you are enjoying the chapters. I will try my best to satisfy you, as well as other readers.**

**Makubex000 – The problems will continue to arise… but they will be resolved soon enough, and the clouds will clear, yes. Thanks for the review.**

**Guest 1 – I did reveal some of their pasts as you wished to the best of my limit for now, and yes, Hibari, Mukuro, and Gokudera would be closer for now, as the other 5 grows closer to one another as well. I am glad you enjoyed the chapter – I also enjoyed reading your review.**

**AngeliqueSora – in the case of the first generation and Byakuran's interactions, I can't fully explain them right now at the moment, but they would be explained soon enough. And well, Chrome and Mukuro… I hope you figured something out by reading this chapter.**

**Beatrix – Thank you for the exciting and encouraging review. It delighted me in many ways. Here is another update, and I hope you liked it.**

**Until my next update,**

**~Rica~**


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_**16XX, MAY 23**__**RD**__**, DAY 14**_**…**

"Isn't it today?"

Asari suddenly said out of nowhere. All the guardians, including Giotto, who was concentrating on his leftover paperwork (which really, he had a week to complete, but G urged him to hurry up and do it before Daemon and Alaude breaks something else) turned to the swordsman, who just blinked for a while. "What do you mean," G frowned, lowering his morning paper. "Today? Is something that I don't know of happening today?"

Daemon snapped his fingers, as if he finally knew what was going on. "Ah, how could I forget?" The illusionist seemed to be oddly delighted – and that's how the rest of the guardians noticed the true meaning behind the words. "My dear Elena was coming back today! She was supposed to come three days ago, but it got delayed because she was invited to join some kind of tea party with some other women." G snorted, as he said, "Yeah, right, tea party. Women just love those stuff. What's so good about eating cakes, sitting around and talking about the latest gossip?"

"Well, if you view it in that way, then the women will say why do men focus on hunting and horses so much. Do you know the expression Elena makes when Knuckle and G used to discuss about whether street boxing was better, shooting matches in the alleys were more productive? She looked like she wanted to escape her current situation and hide in a hole." Giotto commented remarkably, as G rolled his eyes in response. "Though, I got to admit, I never saw the point in tea parties. It's quite a waste of money, I think."

"Enough about tea parties. The great thing is that firstly, we will have one more helpful supporter that will stand on our side to observe the kids. Elena is brilliant with children, isn't she? I think she might be able to help with the more stuck up ones." Lampo said, as the other guardians nodded in fair agreement. The 7 males were doing the best they could, but males and females could be two different figures to children. Furthermore, during the past 4 days, the adults noticed – that almost all of the children seemed to have a small fear towards males. To be specific, males who were rather tall (In which, all the Vongola guardians were) and around their mid-twenties to whatever age. Some just didn't seem to be fond with the existence of adults at all – like Lambo, Tsuna, or Mukuro.

"It's hard without a female, I admit." Knuckle nodded unconsciously at his own remark. "And Elena could be an excellent mother figure. She is gentle, kind, and in ways, cherubic. I just hope that at least some of the kids would grow a liking to her." The other guardians didn't reply for a while, until Giotto put his ink pen down and spoke. "Though, I wonder…" The blonde paused. "My Hyper Intuition has been telling me for the past few days that one of the kids is rather… no, actually, I just have bad feeling. Whether it's about the kids or not, I don't know."

"Now that you mention it, boss," Daemon hummed as he tapped the handle of his armchair rhythmically against the fine wood. "Isn't it odd?" Giotto frowned in a questioning manner. "I'm wondering, whether those kids were pulled into our time by mere random choices. There are hundreds and I hope not, but probably trillions or whatever number of children the future have – that would be suffering poverty, human trafficking, and slavery – though it might look different. And out of all those children on this planet… even if they are our descendants, there is no exact guarantee that they are our only descendants, right?" Daemon trailed off, as Alaude continued. "8 children, all from one country – namely Japan – that all possess our facial features, and have some kind of connection and relation with the future Vongola." The platinum blonde concluded, as the illusionist nodded.

Giotto hesitated a little before responding. "I have taken that certain fact into consideration. It's too… too fitting to be a coincidence, or just some evil act of fate. There must be a reason they were transported here. Not just because they are our direct descendants – I bet we have more than just one descendant each. And furthermore…" Giotto narrowed his eyebrows. "My Hyper Intuition tells me… that those kids are all unconsciously escaping from something. Something…" the blonde trailed off aimlessly. "Something," he paused, before he continued. "Some disastrous existence that are obviously traumatizing them, and connecting all of them at the same time."

"Your Intuition, huh." Lampo mumbled. "Well, I'm not sure if this will help, but the other day, I saw Gokudera-kun mumbling the same word repeatedly under his breath fearfully. It started with a B…" Lampo fumbled through his messed up memories, all jumbled and mixed. "Byakuran." Lampo snapped his fingers. "Presto. It was Byakuran." The Vongola Family scowled a little, all wondering at the same time, what kind of name – or whatever it meant – could be. Byakuran? That was an odd name, really.

"Well, well, what could be going on while I was gone from our 7 handsome young men?"

A new voice intruded the small office, as the guardians instantly turned towards the entrance – some looking at the newcomer in confusion, and some recognizing the melodious voice almost immediately. And in which, some simply didn't take notice nor cared. Elena, the illusionist's so-called girlfriend was standing in the doorway, her beautiful navy dress fitting her small and thin figure in an elegant manner. Daemon kissed her on the cheek, as she kissed him back. Lampo twitched in disgust, though it was a scene he was already supposed to be used to.

"Welcome back, Elena." Giotto smiled, greeting her with a warm hug. "It's nice to have you again. Really, we were thinking what we will do without you right now. Your help is greatly necessary at the moment, and he want you to help us in every way possible." The blonde intoned, and the female tilted her head to the side with curiosity. "And what could this important matter be, Giotto? It's quite a rare sight to see _you_ lose your calm, hm?" Giotto flushed at the comment, but cleared his throat before starting.

"Well, you see…" Asari started, but trailed off, as if he didn't exactly know how to continue. They had so much to explain. The kids, their pasts, their connections with one another, and their goal at the moment. G rolled his eyes, as he decided to give a hand. "We kind of… decided to take care of these kids. 8 kids, to provide a specific number. And that sounds all great and normal, until-"

"Until," Giotto coughed a little. "You notice that they are from the future, they are your descendants that come from 400 years after our time, and they look exactly like us – and it just happens that in the world they live in, Vongola isn't exactly existing for good reasons." Elena looked really confused. She opened her mouth, as if she wanted to ask something, and then closed it again, and repeated this a few times, before she finally found her voice. "So… our descendants?" She questioned, and Daemon shrugged. "I'm assuming… that you and I had some kids." Elena threw Daemon a stern look, and then turned back to the others.

"So, what about our descendants?" Elena questioned, frowning. "I'm guessing, seeing how you mentioned the future Vongola over there… that the future Vongola family was possibly a bad influence to some of them?" Giotto shrugged a little, glad that the female was catching up quickly. "That is what seemed to be happening. Some have unstable mental states, and some dislike direct physical approach. Some don't try to cooperate at all, and those are the ones who know who we are." Elena nodded, and the tilted her head to the side as she spotted Hibari jumping over the gate outside. "Oh, I suppose that one is one of them? Looks just like our Alaude, that boy." Elena murmured, as Alaude grunted. "He's my descendant. I expect no more from a boy of my blood."

"Well, well… is that so." Elena nodded, as she stared at Hibari run out swiftly and rather quietly, considering that he was well, really just running on one dusty, and rocky road. "He doesn't look very welcoming, does he?" G clucked his tongue, as Elena didn't respond. "He's Alaude's descendant after all. I couldn't have expected an all smiley-happy child. That would be quite… well, it would be shocking, for one, and he would be interesting to take care of." She said, shrugging.

"Take care of?" Knuckle raised his eyebrows. "We are only taking them in for a month. Actually, we now have… about 2 more weeks. In that short amount of time, we are going to try to get them as close to us as possible, and convince them that they indeed don't need to go through to difficulties of returning to their original universe. In which, if they do, I would be very unimpressed by their short-minded decision." The priest sighed lightly, as he tapped on his bible that was sitting on his lap.

"I'd say…" Lampo mumbled. "It's not half bad if they just go back." The other guardians glared scornfully at the lightning guardian. "I was joking, geez. Chill, people." Lampo said defensively, as Giotto frowned and averted his attention elsewhere. "Though," the green head continued quietly, "It's harsh to say, but I am having a hard time, personally, to get along with any of them. Sure, it's my descendant, and there is fault in me – or the future me that obviously wanted a family tree – didn't take care of my children and warned them about the Vongola, so on and so forth. But my responsibility, at the same time, only can stretch until my grandchildren at the longest. It's not my fault if the other descendants create conflict, or are in a troubled situation." Lampo paused, trying to be honest, and finding it hard at the same time. "Maybe the reason I feel sorry for that Lambo boy is not because he is my descendant, but just out of pity. It's challenging to love and help a child of my blood, when I just saw him 2 weeks ago and he doesn't even respond to my questions or answers. They just aren't…" Lampo searched desperately for the suitable word. "Lovable."

The guardians went silent. G was the first one to reply. "I… will have to agree with that." He paused, as he lighted a cigar in his hand and walked towards the window and creaked it open. "It's hard to help kids like that. I know children stuck up and secretive. I know what it feels like to be left out, and to be mistreated by elders at that age. Because I experienced it. I can relate with their sorrow and everything, but at that time, I didn't take it very… well, seriously, I guess. I overcame it. But those kids," G sighed. "Aren't just about sitting around in the streets and all. They all have some kind of weird past, except the few that don't even seem to remember what happened to them at all."

Heavy silence fell upon the room, as words of truth and honesty were thrown and bounced at all of their minds. Finally, Elena stood up. "I will go check on the kids who are currently in the mansion then. If I roam around, there is a high possibility that I will at least see one or two of them, right?" The female shrugged a little, as the guardians nodded as she walked out. Elena sighed as she closed to door behind her, and whispered. "Males are so stuck up, aren't they?" She walked down the long corridor, glancing at the locked wooden doors, trying to hear the sound of talking kids.

She paused in front of the library, staring at the closed room. If there was a room that the kids could be in, there was a pretty fair percentage that they would be in the library – because it had a lot fun material that kids could enjoy, than other rooms around the mansion. The female turned the doorknob a little, as she heard a loud creak in the process of doing so. A few kids were staring back at her – and Elena could easily tell who's descendant was who's. There were a total of 5 kids in the room – 4 boys and 1 girl.

"Who are you, Miss?" Lambo asked quietly, as Elena smiled, thinking how the little boy resembled Lampo so much. She ruffled the boy's hair a little, as Lambo frowned at the sudden touch. "My name is Elena." One girl looked up, and Elena easily recognized that it must be Daemon's child. "I heard of you." Chrome muttered. "Daemon-san talks about you a lot. He seems to like you very much." She continued, as Elena laughed very lightly, her voice melodious and high. "Is that so? That's very sweet of him." She glanced at the other 3 kids – presumably the descendants of Giotto, Asari, and Knuckle.

"So," Elena started, as Lambo escaped from her ruffling hands. "What are your names, dearies?" The kids seemed to be suspicious about her identity. Elena could easily tell that they weren't very open, and definitely didn't trust people very well. But she also had a feeling that the real challenges of talking to weren't the 5 kids in front of her – but the leftover 3 kids of G, Alaude, and… who could be the other one? Probably another one of the guardians. "Of course, you don't need to tell me if you prefer telling me later on. That's totally fine with me. I don't feel like forcing you sweethearts into saying anything." The kids seem to look quite startled, in a way. Elena silently nodded to herself, confirming her hypothesis correct. As she thought, these kids didn't have a very bright past as she was told, and they were also used to following another person's orders. They were also used to being forced to do something, and satisfying another adult – which was presumably why they were afraid of adults in the first place.

"My name is Lambo." Finally, the youngest boy said in a hesitant manner. "Just Lambo." Elena smiled, and nodded. "That's a wonderful name. Suits you very well." Lambo's face flushed. Nobody had ever told him that his name was wonderful, nor suited him well. It was just a name after all. It couldn't be that special. And yet, this woman whom he just met that day, was saying all this. For some reason, Lambo found it hard to accept at once, but he decided it didn't feel so bad to hear such a compliment.

"My name is Chrome. Nice to meet you, um, Elena-san." Elena chuckled quietly, as she patted the girl's back. "No need for the honorifics, honey. And Chrome, you said? A brilliant name as well! Oh, and you look very cute like that, sweetie." Elena smiled at the girl, and Chrome instantly blushed furiously. All she ever heard her whole life after waking up on a hospital bed with no memories at all, was…

"_She doesn't have an eye?"_

"_Terrible…"_

"_She came from a slave center…"_

"_No memories at all…"_

"_The explosion…"_

"_No family found…"_

Chrome shivered very slightly, as she touched her eye patch. She didn't want the words to 'consume' her again. She couldn't let the words possess her again. Then she would be called a monster again. She would lose her identity, she wouldn't be able to remember anything. The only thing she could hear from other people after waking up from her small, short-term coma, was that she came from a Slave Trading Center, and on the way she was being sold, the police force found the truck her and the other slaves were being transported in, and the men, not wanting to be arrested, shot the engine of the truck with their gun and the truck exploded. Most of the kids died in the fierce explosion, and Chrome lost her eye and her organs lost it's purpose and shut down. Even so, there was one couple that adopted her out of pity. However, they also didn't know what to do about her. They took her to another hospital, but they couldn't afford the money for an organ transplant, or even an artificial eye. In the end, they just really lost interest in her and left her alone. Chrome didn't know how they were still not sending her to the orphanage. That was all she knew about herself.

However, sometimes, she would always have a dream. She would be lying down on a bed, and someone would be always holding her hand as she closed her eyes. Everytime, she couldn't see the person's face, but she could hear the soft and gentle voice that would always whisper to her. She had been having the dream even more often after she had been transported to the past. The voice was always soothing, and calming. But now that she was staying in an unknown mansion, you couldn't help but think that she heard a voice similar to that one in her dream. Chrome closed her eyes as Elena talked to the other boys.

"_Good night, Nagi."_

_**MEANWHILE…**_

Hibari sighed, as he leaned on the wall behind him. He glanced at the people who were busily walking around the streets, as carriages drove past him, dust blocking his sight as they did so. Occasionally, a clumsy lady or male would drop their leftover coins, and Hibari would pick them up and buy lunch with that, if he got enough. He opened his hand stared at how much he collected today. Not much. A few silver coins shined in his sweaty palm, as he sighed, deciding that he would just have to get something from the mansion. Or just have nothing at all. He had several options, really.

He stood up, and stretched his arms. He glanced at the sun, seeing that it was slowly starting to go down. He stared at it for a while, deciding that it was soon time that he would have to give his reports. But not now. He still had time, and until then, he didn't plan to do anything. He stared at the small material that he always held beneath his coat. He sometimes wondered why the Millefiore forces could just transport with the bazooka he possessed of. But always, Iris would tell him, that his bazooka had a limited number of people it would transport people, and therefore it would be unusable to the Millefiore forces. Byakuran had agreed with this.

_This is such a pain._ Hibari thought, and then reminded himself that this was his job. The boy was strong for his age, but was still weak compared to the whole Millefiore forces. He was sold to the mafia, and then bought. And all he did was really, digging up about the Vongola Famiglia, and it's allied forces. Or rather, all the mafia Famiglias that were once allied with the Vongola, but all changed directions into supporting the Millefiore instead. The only remaining Famiglias were the Cavallone and Shimon.

"_Ne, Kyoya-chan." Byakuran smiled. "Do you know the reason why I didn't kill you, even though you were literally the only direct blood-related descendant of Alaude?" Hibari frowned, as he stood in front of the sly boss. He didn't respond, however, because he knew the answer would soon come anyways. "And yet I hate all the people or children who bear the Vongola's blood." The man said bitterly, as Hibari listened. The boy hated the boss. But what could he do? Nothing._

"_You are more than just useful, Kyoya-chan." The man chuckled, as he opened his eyes. "That's why I assigned you the job of looking after the boy Rasiel brought from the Slave Trading Center." Byakuran leaned back, as Hibari twitched a little, a chill running down his spine as Byakuran stared into his eyes intimidatingly. _

"_You are just one of my dolls, Kyoya-chan. One of dolls that I succeeded in breaking."_

Broke? A broken doll? Hibari smirked, as he looked up at the now orange sky. He sighed, staring at the silver coins he was clutching ever so dearly in his hands, as if the small circular object could save him from his current situation. He stood up and took out his upgraded bazooka he had received from Spanner, one of the ace technicians of the Millefiore Famiglia. It was still far from complete, and there was a limited amount of transportations he could make. Hibari was ordered to test it out, because it was supposed to transport him to the past. He was surprised that Mukuro was there as well, but he simply thought it was the doing of the Lab. That was why he asked the boy naturally about the Lab, pretending he had no idea why they were there. Everything was not very unexpected, though he was a little startled because all the direct descendants of the Vongola Famiglia were appearing.

_Just a few more weeks, and I will be going back to the Millefiore fully, doing my job. _Then the boy paused a little, before he inserted his body into the bazooka. _However, is that really what I want? _He sighed, shaking his head, as he dropped the bazooka, as he disappeared from sight, only leaving a puff of pink smoke.

The word freedom wasn't in Hibari Kyoya's dictionary.

_**BACK TO THE VONGOLA MANSION…**_

"I think Elena is doing fine with the kids. Pretty impressively, in my opinion." G closed the door behind him, as Giotto nodded, silently signing the sheets of paperwork. "I also heard from Talbot that he is halfway through completing the machine needed in order to get the kids back to the future." Giotto paused, as he sighed, massaging his temples. "Am I…" The blonde mumbled. "Weird, if I somehow don't want them to go?" G frowned, as he stared at his best friend in distress. He walked over to his desk, and didn't respond for a while, as he turned and slumped down on one of the couches.

"Not really. I have seen how much progress you have made with that Tsunayoshi kid. It was a little, but he seems to like you. That's an improvement, as he hardly tried to start a conversation on the first day, just like all the other kids." G stared up at the ceiling a little, and then glanced at Giotto. The room was rather dimly lit, because there was only one candle brightening the office overall. Maybe that was why Giotto looked a little more depressed than he should've been. G really couldn't tell.

"Exactly." Giotto grumbled. "Even though I barely know anything about him, it's hard to just… leave him alone. It goes the same for the other kids. I can't just allow them to go back to how they were." G stared at his friend for a while, and then shrugged. "I don't know about that." He paused, before continuing. "I mean, yes, there did seem to be a few that were considering to remain in this era. I don't exactly have a problem with that, though we would need to go through the pain of sending them to school and all. But Giotto, you also need to know that some of them are wanting to go back to their original world, and their own life." G's expression softened as he whispered quietly. "You need know that some of them given up on being a normal child, Giotto."

The blonde grunted, as if he didn't understand. Actually, he just couldn't understand at all. "Why would they want to return to such a life? All they had been doing their whole life was being controlled and toyed with, right? Then why would they want to be done so all over again? They need know that once they fall into that black, they will never be able to escape it ever." Giotto muttered, as G nodded. Suddenly, the door creaked open. It was Daemon and Alaude.

"I thought you guys went to sleep." Giotto frowned, as Daemon just sat down on his usual armchair. Alaude took a seat next to G, drinking a cup of tea. "We heard some random voices. Actually, I was intending to come here by myself, but I just encountered the skylark on the way walking all the way here, so we just came together. I didn't want to, of course, but we were heading the same direction, so what could I do? Just walk with him forcibly, trying to pull down the need to crush him into pieces and win victory." Daemon rolled his eyes, as Alaude threw a meaningful glare.

"Enough about that." G mumbled. "Are there any other major reasons you decided to come here?" Daemon glanced at Alaude, as the platinum blonde just shrugged. "Well," Daemon started. "I… kind of…" the man hesitated. "Found out… about Mukuro's past. Partially, but it was an important piece of information." Giotto stopped righting with his ink pen abruptly, resulting the black ink to spread all over his paper, staining the words on the sheet. He looked up at Daemon, who was looking quite uncomfortable.

"I thought you could only control dreams, not see through them?" He asked, as Daemon nodded. "That is the case. Usually, I can sense when one is suffering a nightmare of sorts and whatnot. And also, I can control them to make it worse or to the better side. But Mukuro's dreams… are different." G frowned. "Different?" Daemon nodded, looking pretty confused himself.

"Remember the other day, when… I told you, Mukuro was having a nightmare? That day, when I went up to his doorstep, I could sense powerful mist flames. What was odd about them was that they seemed to be very out of control, as if the controller had no idea what he was doing. Today, when I went to check on him, the mist flames were there again. I opened the door and went through, and well…" Daemon paused, glancing nervously at the others. "His dreams… were well… I could see them in front of me."

"What do you mean?" Giotto questioned, not quite understanding what the mist guardian meant. "So, like, his dreams were being shown in front of me as a form of an illusion. I think Mukuro has been unconsciously creating illusions while sleeping, because of his powerful mist flames, that for some reason are always out of control when he is not awake. Those illusions that he created are presented him to as a "nightmare", but really, he is creating an illusion at the same time. Two, really. One in his head, and one on the outside, so that a normal mist guardian would be easily able to see through it. To you, it would just look like a thin layer of mist flames surrounding him, but to a mist guardian, it is seen differently. You can actually see parts of his dream, and what I shown was rather… cruel."

"How… can that happen?" Giotto scowled. "For one to not be able to control their flames and create random illusions-" Alaude opened his mouth to speak, deciding that he would do the explanations. "When mist guardians create illusions, they obviously first picture what they want to create, and then solidify the image they want. That is why a mist guardian can make anything out of illusions, even imaginary creatures – though they are all fake, of course." The carnivore paused, and continued. "But in Mukuro's case, since he doesn't know he possesses the flames himself, he of course doesn't know how to control them. When he is awake, he is pretty ok, which makes him unconsciously pull down the flames without knowing he is doing so. However, when he is asleep, he is unable to that, and the flames create their own illusions, since the controller himself doesn't know what he wants to create. These illusions are shown to Mukuro in a form of a nightmare, and shows him what he usually thinks about – as illusions are directly made off the brain." Alaude concluded, as Giotto frowned.

"But what is exactly what you saw, Daemon?" Giotto asked, as Daemon looked down at his hands and fiddled with his shirt for a while. "Well…" the older male hesitated. "I saw several torture scenes. I couldn't read the signs or posts, as I think they were in English, (Because the illusionist only speaks Japanese and Italian) but one was written in Japanese, and it said…" Daemon twitched. "Slave Trading Center. We sell the finest, cheapest slaves you can find, with ages from five to eighteen. Really, the scene grossed me out. There was children everywhere, and blood, and… stuff." The male seemed like he didn't want to continue any further. "Oh, and I think there was a girl. Though the scene showing her was very brief, as Mukuro seemed to be waking up then."

Giotto nodded, deep in thought.

"I see."

_**WITH BYAKURAN…**_

"So, what does Kyoya-chan say today?" Byakuran asked, as Rasiel cleared his throat. "Usual stuff, sir. He is saying nothing in particular happened." Byakuran rolled his eyes. "That stubborn child. It's a shame I can't break him yet, even though he is the closest in touch. I still need him to get back all the kids to future as well. I can just imagine the little kids' expressions when they realize that they would have to be tortured all over again. It would be a delight to hear them scream, I think." Byakuran chuckled, as Rasiel dropped beads of cold sweat, once again getting to know how brutal the male could get.

"We are almost there."

"Almost there."

_**End of chapter.**_

**Lots of pasts were revealed today. Firstly, Chrome's. I hope that answered a lot of your questions about the relationship of Chrome and Mukuro from the last chapter. The reason Chrome can't remember Mukuro is because she lost her memories about him in the explosion of the truck, her organs and eyes technically disappearing in the process. **

**Also, about Kyoya… well… yes, he is acting as a spy, kind of. He works under Byakuran, and is basically an information collector that knows all about the kids that share the blood of the Vongola Famiglia, just like him. He was originally sent to past because he needed to test out the upgraded bazooka Spanner wanted to try out, but ended up staying there after he told Byakuran that the other kids that shared the Vongola's blood was with him. The bazooka that he uses right now has a limited number of times that can transport a person, and also it can't transport a large amount of people at once. That is why Byakuran ordered Spanner and Irie to create a better bazooka, really. **

**For Mukuro's part, those who didn't understand – it's just saying that the nightmares that Mukuro had been dreaming of were actually illusions that his mist flames were making, because he couldn't take control of them while he was asleep. This involves what the Lab did to him, but this will be explained later on.**

**If you have any further questions, please PM me directly, or put them in the reviews. I would try to answer them to the best of my abilities, though I wouldn't be able to give you any hints to specific parts of their pasts. That, you'll need to wait for the chapters and updates.**

**Replies:**

**Knightcross – good job on figuring out what Hibari meant. Also, I hope this chapter explained why Chrome couldn't remember Mukuro, despite their love and bonds between one another. I am glad you are fond of the character development as well.**

**Zhizn214 – Tsuna and Byakuran will indeed share some form of rivalry in the far future, but not at the moment. I am glad you are enjoying the chapters.**

**Makubex000 – the reason Mukuro can't remember his sister is because he brainwashed, and even after he was tested on countless experiments that injured his brain. This would be presented to you later, though. And for the Varia, I am still debating their existence in the future. I don't know yet.**

**Natsu Yuuki – you are a good cheerleader, I think. Thanks for the encouragement.**

**AngeliqueSora – Tsuna's past is more than bullying, really, since he was never sent to school. His past goes deeper, but I don't plan on writing about him for now. I hope this chapter answered some of your questions.**

**Yuna x Haku – It's sad, yes. Here's your update.**

**Reader101 – I am not sure whether to put in the Varia yet, really. I am thinking about it.**

**Jak – thanks for the compliments. It helps me a lot.**

**Fatesmask – I am glad you are enjoying this story. I hope you continue to do so.**

**This chapter wasn't boring, was it? I hope it wasn't…**

**~Meiko~**


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

_**16XX, MAY 29**__**TH**__**, DAY 20…**_

_Gokudera Hayato opened his eyes and quickly sat up, feeling the warm breeze of a dreamy gush of wind sweep across his face. He glanced around his surroundings, and noticed he was in the middle of a familiar garden – it was the garden of the Scuro Famiglia – the Famiglia he was born into. The Garden of the Dark Eden. He sighed in relief, and then frowned, noticing the flaw in this scenery. He wasn't supposed to be here. He had left the Scuro Famiglia pretty much ages ago. No, more like he was forced to leave. He never gave up the position of the heir of the Scuro Famiglia – becoming the Scuro Decimo. The silver haired boy stood up, slightly nervous. _

'_This is a dream.' He thought, maintaining a calm composure and expression overall. 'It's a dream, it will soon end, like dreams always do. It will end soon. It will…' He stopped mumbling in his mind mid-way, as he saw his younger self – when he was still a mere kid who was barely 6. He flinched. He knew this situation. He was walking alone as usual, in the Garden, forgetting the fact that his father was expecting visitors in the afternoon. And at that time he had met-_

"_Hello." Gokudera took a few steps backward as he heard the warm, kind voice, and spotted the usual composed and relaxed face of the new teenager he was seeing in front of him. "What are you doing here?" The teenager asked him, as the younger Gokudera just stared up at the unexpected visitor and scowled. The male chuckled, scratching his unnaturally white hair. "I see, I see, so you're the one that's the son of the Scuro Nono. My father is the Vongola Nono." Gokudera gulped, as he stared at the scene that was folding up in front of his very eyes. He could feel both fear and cold rage build up from the bottom of his heart, as he tried to move his legs but failed. His breathing was becoming more uneven as time went by, and he continued to spectate the scene, his younger self meeting the male he would most fear in the far future. The white haired teen finally opened his mouth and held out his hand at the younger Gokudera._

"_My name is Byakuran. What is yours?"_

Gokudera gasped as he woke up, his body covered in cold sweat. He grunted as he fell down on the tree branch he was sleeping down, and rubbed the back of his neck in momentary pain. He then leaned on the tree trunk and spread his legs on the green grass. It was still about 3 in the afternoon. Who knew that taking a nap for two hours could bring back such a vague, but also in some ways vivid memory? The boy stared up at the sky as the wind whistled in his ears, and the grass tickled his wrist as he continued to think.

_I was around 6… so he must've been around… what, 13? Since he's 17 right now… _Gokudera sighed heavily, as he stared back down at his hands. _If it wasn't for him… no, that's incorrect. I would've still been kicked out of the family, whether it was for him or not. After all, I failed. I failed to follow to orders of my father and accomplish my mission. My mission to kill the next heir of the Vongola Famiglia… Not Byakuran, but… _a certain brunette's smiling face shone upon his eyes. _He was too young then. He could barely walk around, and I… _the silver haired boy remained silent on his place, and grunted as he stood up. His head still kind of ached from the fall, but he decided that it wasn't a very big deal.

"Hayato?" Gokudera flinched as he heard the lacy and smooth voice call him by his first name ever so casually. It was Elena. Gokudera glared at the female. "Don't call me that." He muttered under his breath, as the female gave him a glum but disappointed look. Then she forced a small smile and approached the boy and sat down where Gokudera just stood up from, leaning on the tree trunk just like he did. Gokudera frowned. "What are you doing?" He asked, annoyed by the woman's actions but not leaving her alone anyways. In many varying factors, Elena resembled his mother. And Gokudera didn't like that.

"I just wondered what it felt like to sit here, under this tree, alone. Alone with the breeze and nature, that is." Elena looked bright as always, as she continued. Gokudera unconsciously sat down next to her again. "Just like you were." As she opened her eyes, Gokudera's scowl soon softened, as he relaxed his hunched shoulders. "You're an odd woman." Gokudera grumbled under his breath, as Elena tilted her head to the side. But the boy didn't respond, and Elena just smiled weakly and shook her head. "A woman can't just be plain, Hayato. They always need something off about them. That's what makes them attractive, mysterious, and charming." Gokudera shrugged. "I wonder." Both of them didn't talk or move for a while, staring up at the blue sky – well, once blue sky – gray clouds were starting to gather and merge, blocking the rather beautiful view.

"Do you know a song, Hayato?" Elena questioned, and Gokudera glanced at her, and then just turned away. The female chuckled. "It's a song passed down from my family line. The lyrics are kind of hard to understand for kids like you that are from the future I suppose, but it's a wonderful song nevertheless." Elena opened her mouth, as a gentle breeze blew over the two, as Gokudera's eyes widened, staring at the woman.

"There are 8 lonely clams, 8 lonely clams. The lonely 8 that did no wrong, but were tainted black and shattered by the strong. The powerful seas, the fearsome waves, O', how fearsome they were. The lonely 8 clams, the lonely 8 clams. They break, they shatter, they cry, and fight together – but O', the fearsome waves – too strong, too vicious, too merciless… the storms arise, and the skies open again, and the fierce wind stops, O', the time of judgment and justice is here. A rainbow – a beautiful rainbow appears in front, and the lonely 8 clams are no longer black… O', the lonely 8 clams, the lonely 8 clams… now fearless and friendly."

_Mother… _Gokudera continued to stare, as Elena glanced at Gokudera, and then frowned. The boy stood up after a while of silence. "I'm going to the library." He said quietly, as Elena smiled and nodded. She took a look at the sky above, and noticed that almost the last bit of blue had vanished from sight.

"I should get going too… looks like there would be a heavy rain." She sighed as she walked into the mansion. The female opened the double doors and stepped into the dimly lighted corridor, glancing around her surroundings. The mansion was eerily silent at this time of the day. Some kids would be taking a nap or chatting to one another, lowering their voices – in which Elena thought of weirdly at first. But soon, she noticed it was just a result of their life on the streets, the cruel orphanage, etc. Of course – if you lived a poor life, surrounded by underprivileged people and materials, taking a quick nap (but making sure they wouldn't fall in sleep too deeply) when they had the time, and talking in low and whispery voices was soon to become a habit.

Since the first day she had encountered the 8 kids, Elena didn't pity them for their situations, but felt angry. She could feel rage towards the people who had hurt the kids so physically yet emotionally, digging through them until they couldn't hold it any longer, and pushing them to their limits – at least, the limit their mental state would carry them. _This is why humans are so naïve, so useless, so evil and needy… when they think their own life isn't going so well for them, they torture the ones that are weaker and more lowly than they are, just to take out their stress on them and make them feel the relief that they are still on top of someone else, whether that's a kid or whatnot. Useless, useless… _She shook her head subconsciously and then stopped as she saw a book thrown off carelessly next to an open window. Outside it was raining heavily, and the rain drops were wetting the book as the carpet was on the verge of becoming fully saturated. She quickly closed the glass windows and covered them as she let the curtains hung loose again. Then she quickly picked up the book and took it to a nearby room, setting it on the bed. She noticed the style the book was made – well, rather a notebook – wasn't styled and designed of materials of the 1600s. The binds were made out of strange metal, and the cover of the notebook was dark blue leather.

_Is it from one of the kids? Must be… this kind of colored leather is quite rare. And this smooth paper and texture… it's nice from our time, definitely. _She flipped through the pages. The first few pages were blurry, the words unreadable because of the rain. As she flipped further past the front, the words were more firm and in place and dry. Finally, she reached a page where everything was perfectly legible, the paper warm and smooth – not soggy and weak. It was written in neat, systematic Japanese – in fact, in kind of reminded Elena of Alaude's flawlessly spaced and worded reports that were hand written with black ink. She noticed the date on the start of page. It was May 28th, just yesterday. Elena frowned. _A journal? It's rude to look through personal belongings, but for Giotto's sake…_ she scanned the page. The sentences were short and curt, and Elena soon recognized that it was Hibari's. A few days of observation, and the female could easily tell how the boy liked to talk. And usually, when a person has a certain way of talking, they write exactly how they talk. It was quite easy to tell, really.

_Byakuran gave new orders about the descendants of the Vongola. Get the lightning herbivore, he said. _Elena's eyes widened, as she gripped the cold book tighter as she read the name Byakuran. It was mentioned a few days ago, again – it was about how G noticed that Gokudera was mumbling that name more often when he was left alone. Elena gulped and continued reading.

_He said to send the lightning herbivore over tomorrow. He said that the Primo and the others will easily think that the herbivore would've wandered off on his own and got lost. The ten-year bazooka that that boy's family kept would help improve the creation of the new bazooka Spanner and Irie is currently attempting to invent. Odd, because the boy himself doesn't have the ten-year bazooka – the other descendant of the Bovino does. Who that other descendant is – that is yet unknown. Byakuran is probably going to try to lure the herbivores of the Vongola Primo and his Famiglia into the future, and learn the secret about the ten-year bazooka, and in the way, ending the line of the Vongola completely._

_Nevertheless, I received a mission, and I am expected to complete it successfully. Tomorrow, with the lightning herbivore, I will be gone from the Vongola mansion. Hopefully, someone finds this entry. If not, I would walk on my path like this. _

_Vongola is fated to end._

Elena just sat there for a while, as lightning bolts flashed and the windows rattled because of the wind. It was a heavy rain, considering the fact that it wasn't even supposed to be the rainy season yet. Elena quickly put down the notebook, trying to remember what happened in the morning. All the kids were present. All except Hibari, who was always missing during breakfast. That was normal. Lambo was there too, as always. Until then, Lambo was still there.

_In the noon. In the noon, where all the kids split up and went to their own rooms. Hibari wasn't back then, and Lambo went to his own room. Giotto and the others went down to the city for a while to get done with some business matters… _Elena stood up abruptly as stared at the sight outside. Then she quickly opened the door and ran down to Giotto's office, where probably all the guardians were by now, carrying the notebook in her hand. As she ran, she completely forgot the fact that she was even wearing one of her best dresses – she just ran down the stairs, stepping on the lacy cloth by accident a few times, and almost tripping on her high shoes. She slammed opened the door, panting, finding Giotto and his guardians sitting around the circular tea table that was placed at the side of the large room.

"Elena? What is-" Daemon said, startled at his girlfriend's desperate expression. The female grabbed the hem of Knuckle's clean shirt (basically because he was the nearest person in reach) and cried hurriedly, gasping for breath and trying to make out words at the very same time. "Lambo-" She coughed. "He- he- he's-" Knuckle, who didn't know who was going on, just clutched the female's shoulders and let out small, calming sun flames and soothed the rushing woman back to normal – at least, evening her breathing again. "He's- he's gone." It wasn't exactly the most suitable word for the current situation, but it was the only vocabulary she could use at that moment. Lampo flinched a little, and grabbed the edge of the couch he was sitting on.

"What do you mean?" Asari questioned, his expression tainted with worry and sincerity. Elena sighed, as she leaned on Daemon a little, who was now standing next to her, ready to catch her if she fainted. "He's… Kyoya-kun… he…" Elena didn't know where to start. But mentioning Kyoya's name was a good idea, because it caught a certain skylark's attention. Elena, not being able to form any words, fumbled for the notebook and gave it to Giotto, who flipped past the wet pages, and reached the dry page where the last entry was. He skimmed through the page, and then paused as he read the final paragraph. Then the blonde stared at Elena for a while, and then at Alaude. He sat back down on his own couch, his expression shocked and dumbfounded. _I always knew something was off about Hibari… but this… this was unexpected. A spy… a spy sent from the future among the kids… _Giotto frowned for a while. The guardians went silent as they read the short journal entry that was written in perfectly neat handwriting, as if Hibari felt totally normal when he wrote this – normal, almost as if this happened every day. _Why… _Giotto sighed.

Alaude on the other hand, had several feelings attacking him at once. First was shock. Very small, but it was still a feeling of pure shock. He had never expected _his _descendant, out of all the descendants, to become a spy of the enemy Famiglia they were just about to face. Second was rage. However, it wasn't rage towards his young descendant that had betrayed the Famiglia, but the so called Byakuran that had tormented the boy had pushed him to such a state. The boy never became a herbivore because he wanted to – he was forced to. Lastly, there was little – but there, remained emptiness. Alaude never felt like this before, such a sensation. Maybe it was because he was never close to anyone, not even his family. His parents rarely talked to him, and his siblings lived their own lives, caring their own business. He never really considered anyone as a close comrade, friend, or anything in the boundaries of a family. However, Hibari was slightly different. The way the boy acted reminded Alaude so much of how he used to be, if you took out the part where he talked about the Lab time to time. And now, the boy was gone. Gone, claiming that he was the betrayer among the trashed, the used among the useless. It didn't make the platinum blonde feel very comfortable, now that he was aware of the fact.

"Well," Lampo broke the silence. "What do we do now?" It was a rather blunt and broad question that nobody could answer to right away. "I don't want to sit around and do nothing right now." Lampo mumbled quietly. "I actually want to help for once." Giotto looked up at the lightning guardian with a surprised expression. "It's true I still find it hard to take that kid in as a family member, and to love him like a son and whatever you people wanted me to do. I can't do that yet. But I have feelings, and I do indeed care for my family. Believe it or not, that is." Lampo said, and Giotto's expression softened.

"I don't doubt that certain fact, Lampo. I really don't. We need to save Lambo. And on the way, if possible, we need to talk to Hibari. But before all that, we need an explanation." Giotto started slowly, but was unsure of how to continue. G, noticing his friend's uncertainty, cleared his throat and went on smoothly. "If we gather the points we know about this Byakuran and his Famiglia, there aren't many. The first obvious point is that Hayato knows about Byakuran. The second one is that he is probably connected to all the pasts of the kids, and might be the one who made all those happen. And as stated in the journal entry, it is confirmed that Kyoya was a spy helping out Byakuran, and his mission was to kidnap Lambo, who is now, as written there, a descendant of the Bovino Famiglia that created this machine called the ten-year bazooka, that helps people from the future somehow come to our era. So far, that's all we have." G listed down the factors, as the guardians, including Elena, listened attentively.

"So, are we in trouble?" A friendly chuckle was heard from the door, and there stood Talbot with his tall wooden stick. "I was expecting this to happen, but well." G scowled, slightly startled by the man's sudden arrival. "What do you mean, you were expecting this?" Talbot remained silent, as he sat on Giotto's armchair that was next to his desk. "It was obvious that one of the kids weren't at ease when they first arrived, wasn't it?" Asari frowned. "All the kids weren't at ease. They were all nervous, and fearing of something." Talbot chuckled. "That is true. All the kids were fearing something. But wasn't there one kid that was different than the others? One kid that didn't try to socialize and associate with the other ones – a little too much, that it was unnatural?" Giotto and his guardians glanced at one another.

"I told you, Giotto, that those fellas went through a lot. That little lad was just one of the many. Poor boy, poor boy he is. Well, there those lads that don't even know that eachother are truly blood-related, but that may come later." Talbot cleared his throat. "The time machine I prepared for you is ready. It's slightly incomplete, but still useable." G stood up rather abruptly. "You should've told us that earlier-" Talbot stopped him, however. "Relax, G. You have lots to get over before you will be able to travel to the future. And furthermore, it takes at least 2 days to get the time machine fully ready for launch. Until then, I expect you to get information out of the Gokudera lad. He knows almost every single thing about the Tsuna boy, and also the Lambo boy." The old man paused, and then continued quietly. "And he has been acting as a brother to the Lambo lad. It's right to inform of him of the boy's absence, yes?"

G hesitated, and then shut his mouth. Talbot nodded, and then exited the room, to get the time machine ready for it's first travel. The guardians went to library, following what Elena had told them, passing the rooms of the kids, where they were still silently taking a nap. Gokudera was reading a classic book about Greek mythology, until the guardians barged in. The first thing the boy did was scowl, and then put down the book on the soft, carpeted floor. "What are you people doing here, all together?" He asked, as Knuckle closed the door behind him. Gokudera, sensing something was out of place, immediately stuck to the wall, his hands travelling down his pocket and searching for something he could use to defend himself, just in case.

"Hayato." G said softly. "We're just here to ask something, that's all. After that, we'll leave you alone here, as you wish." Gokudera's hunched up shoulders went down a little, but his nervous, queasy feeling still remained in his stomach. "Listen, Hayato, and we want you to respond to our question honestly." Giotto started, and Gokudera narrowed his eyes. "Who is Byakuran?" At that moment, Gokudera froze. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. His eyes immediately went blank, as he stared at Giotto and his guardians, including Elena who was in Daemon's arms. "What do you mean?" Gokudera asked, his voice shaky and low. Giotto shook his head. "You know what we mean, Hayato." The blonde opened his mouth again. "Who is Byakuran?" Gokudera stared. When he found his voice again, he replied.

"How did you get to know that name?" he asked, and Giotto shrugged. "It wasn't very challenging. We saw you mutter in a few times. And now, we need to know who he is. For your safety, and your brother's welfare." Giotto managed to say, as Gokudera blinked. "Lambo?" He whispered. Asari nodded from the side. "Your brother was captured by Byakuran. It seems like… Kyoya-kun was behind this. Now, we need what you know in order to return things back to normal, and how it was. We need your help." The rain guardian said, as Gokudera blinked once again. When he realized what was happening, he slowly fell to the floor, his legs giving in. First it was Byakuran. Then it was Lambo. _No… I promised _him _that I would protect Lambo and yet… Lambo… that Hibari Kyoya… _Gokudera looked up for a while. He knew that this wasn't something he could keep anymore. He needed their help. They needed his knowledge.

"What do you want to know?" He asked. Giotto opened his mouth to speak. "Everything. Everything single fact you know about Byakuran." Gokudera didn't know where to start. The range of the question was wide, and he found it rather difficult, deciding where he needed to start. "The first time I met Byakuran was when I was about 6. He was about 13. Basically, he just became a teenager. In your era, it would be called adulthood, I guess." Gokudera sighed. "I was the son of the Scuro Nono, an allied Famiglia with the Vongola Famiglia at that time. Vongola Nono, Timoteo, and my father had meetings often, but that was the first time Byakuran had ever come over."

"Wait, Byakuran actually had relations to the Vongola Famiglia?" G asked, and Gokudera nodded glumly. "He is the son of Vongola Nono – in other words, he is your direct descendant, Vongola Primo." Giotto's eyes widened. "I think at that time, everything was fine. Byakuran seemed to be pretty normal. He was smart, and I could understand why everyone called him a genius and the perfect heir. However, at that time I didn't know that at that time, our Famiglia and the Vongola's relationship was starting to crack, and go downhill. I knew allied Famiglias didn't last forever, but…" Gokudera paused. "When I became 8, I was ordered to kill the heir of the Vongola Decimo place by my father. Finally, the Scuro and the Vongola had decided to come to its end. I wondered if it was Byakuran, but it wasn't. I was sent out to kill a brunette and his family. The brunette, however, was only just born. I killed his parents as I was ordered to, but I couldn't kill the brunette. I told my father about this, because I didn't want to lie. My father was deeply disappointed in me and kicked me out of the family." Gokudera stopped to glance at Giotto, who was seeming to finally get the hang of things.

"Tsuna said that his parents died when he was just born and sent to the orphanage." Giotto said. Gokudera nodded. "I killed his parents. I didn't kill him though, and as a result, I was kicked out of family. My father, however, was assassinated by the Millefiore Famiglia soon after, an arising Famiglia created by Byakuran. What the reason was, I am still not sure what. I am just aware of the fact that Byakuran now, has almost surpassed his father, and his planning to destroy the Vongola Famiglia t full scale with all his might. I doubt anyone will able to stand against his army of Gola Moscas." Gokudera said, as Giotto stared at the boy in shock. However, he soon regained his composure with difficulty, and continued on.

"Last question. How did you meet Lambo?" Daemon was the one that asked this. He needed to know the answer to this one – it was a question that would make all the puzzle pieces fit. At least, fit for Gokudera's past. Gokudera seemed to be trailing off into past. Then, he finally opened his mouth.

"Do you remember, how I said that I found Lambo when he was born, on the streets?" The guardians nodded. "Well, that's wrong. I found him actually, when I was on the way of escaping from a band of men in the alleys. He was about 5, then. He was asleep, and was being carried by a young teenager. I think he was about… 16. I don't know, he should be about 18 by now. That's not really important though. But I do remember, that he was heavily injured, and he said he was from the Bovino Famiglia, and he needed someone to look after his little brother. He told me that when his brother woke up, he shouldn't remember anything, since he gave him a pill that made him forget his past memories. He also told me that his name was Lambo. Lambo Bovino, to be exact, but he said to not tell him his last name. I agreed, for some reason. I don't know what got me there, but it seemed the right thing to do at the time." Giotto nodded, and then paused, noticing the new comer in the story.

"Did this brother tell him his name?" Gokudera blinked, and then slowly nodded. "I don't know what happened to him now, but he was a blonde. He looks similar but different but Lambo as well. They have different colored hair, but the same green eyes, and the same expression. I'm pretty sure his name was…" Gokudera fumbled through his vague and blurry memories and encounters with people. It was two years ago, so what that man said was rather hard to recall. But when he finally did, he was able to pronounce the name clearly.

"His name was Spanner. Spanner Bovino."

**End of Chapter.**

**Chapter 7 completed. Completed with a cliffhanger, that is. With Gokudera's past fully revealed (quite) and Lambo's past slightly shown, including the capturing, and the disappearance of Hibari and Lambo… the next few chapters will finally pick up speed, now that I am getting to the point. **

**To explain Gokudera's past, basically he was born into a Famiglia called the Scuro Famiglia that was allied to the Vongola in its ninth generation. His father was very strict about his education. He meets Byakuran when he's 6, and finally, when the Scuro betrays the Vongola and goes to become and ally of the Millefiore Famiglia, (That just started when Byakuran was VERY young.) his father tells him to kill the possible heir of the Vongola Famiglia, Tsuna. Gokudera pities the situation of the brunette and keeps him alive, but kills his parents anyways. Due to this, Gokudera's father kicks him out of the family, and Gokudera meets an heavily injured Spanner who was escaping from the Millefiore Famiglia. He hands Lambo over to Gokudera, and then disappears. Spanner's story would be revealed bit by bit as Lambo's past unveils.**

**I'm glad that this story is finally picking up speed. Thanks for being patient, guys.**

**Replies:**

**Codename-Erza – thanks for you support. Here is the next chapter for you.**

**Knightscross – I am glad you liked my explanations. And no, I don't plan on making Elena die. She does play an important role in this story, as you can see, but she won't die. And I don't think Ken and Chikusa would appear in THIS story, unless I make a sequel after I complete writing this one. It would be fun writing about them, though.**

**Zhizn214 – I am trying my best to make the story flow faster. I managed to explain one's past in this chapter, and dropped some more hints. It's probably not satisfactory, but I hoped you enjoyed this chapter.**

**Guest – Well, in this chapter it's explained why Hayato knew about Byakuran. Kyoya being a spy also plays a heavy role in this chapter. I am glad you are having fun with this. Thanks for the support.**

**Ghostunderasheet – it is depressing indeed, but the first generation would fix them, though probably not right now. Thanks for the review.**

**Makubex000 – I am glad you think it's an interesting story.**

**StarLikeShadow – it was supposed to be a quite emotional chapter, I suppose. Alaude and Kyoya's relationship would improve as well, so no worries… I guess. Thanks for the review.**

**Until chapter 8.**

**~Meiko~**


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

_**16XX, STILL MAY 29**__**TH**__**, DAY 20…**_

The Vongola guardians sat around the long table in their official meeting room in silence, as Giordano brought in the coffee they had requested for. The kids were getting ready to go to sleep downstairs, some of them chatting noisily. Tsuna squealed in excitement time to time with Chrome, as Giotto couldn't help but bear a small smile. The mansion soon grew quiet once again, after the maids tucked the children to bed, and then, the Vongola could finally start their 'talk'.

"Firstly, to start off with, there is a huge flaw in Hayato's story." Daemon stated calmly, as G threw him a filthy glare. Nonetheless, the mist guardian continued. "Hayato said that he killed Tsuna's parents when he could barely walk. Babies can usually walk before they even turn fully one years old. At least, that's what happened to my uncle's child. Tsuna is now 8 years old, and Hayato is 10. If what Hayato said is true, then Tsuna should've been 6 when Hayato killed off his parents. Nothing exactly matches, nor makes sense. It's a little too absurd for my taste." Daemon concluded, and G grunted. "Are you saying that Hayato lied?" The mist guardian narrowed his eyes slowly, gripping the handle of his cup. "I never said he did. I am just saying that his story doesn't make sense, and Hayato himself should be aware of that as well. He is a smart kid." G exhaled slowly, and then leaned back on his chair.

"I noticed his attitude when he was talking. He seemed to know that something was wrong. Almost as if he was unsure of what he was talking about himself either. At first I thought that it was because he was worried of Lambo's safety. Later, I figured out that that wasn't it. He seemed to be quite distracted, yes, but… you know what I mean?" G asked hopefully, and unexpectedly, Alaude responded quietly. "No." The platinum blonde sipped his black coffee, as G growled at him. Alaude continued. "Besides, if you are trying to persuade someone with mere facts and observations you analyzed and came up with exactly 3 hours ago, then you would need to do a better job in phrasing the words in a convincing manner." G twitched uncomfortably, knowing that Alaude was more than just correct. The right hand man always hated and despised the fact that the cloud guardian was so calm and composed, even in the darkest situations where it was abnormal to be any of those elements. For example, now, when his descendant, had captured Lampo's descendant into an enemy Famiglia's base and acted as a spy without making anyone notice. "Heartless freak." G muttered.

"Now, now, you can evidently see that Alaude's feeling troubled as well, G. Let's not fight amongst eachother like little kids." Asari sighed, as G glared at the Japanese swordsman. "I'm not feeling troubled." Alaude retorted grumpily, as Asari just shrugged it off, deciding that not responding was more beneficial for both sides. "Back to the topic." Giotto cleared his throat. "I could feel it with my hyper intuition that Gokudera wasn't lying, do please do not become so enraged, G. However, it's true that there is something else to Gokudera's story. Something else… something that Gokudera himself doesn't know as well." Giotto sighed heavily. "It was so confusing. It kept on telling me that it wasn't… it wasn't a part of his story that he was supposed to care about. It might be that my intuition is incorrect this time, but I would have to doubt that. The intuition was stronger than any kind I had ever felt."

"A part of his past that Gokudera doesn't know, but doesn't need to care about?" Knuckle questioned curiously. "Does that mean… that there is something that Gokudera is misunderstanding something about his own past?" Giotto shrugged, indicating that he didn't know as well. Lampo, who was silent for the whole meeting, tapped his fingers rhythmically on table. He looked up, and finally opened his mouth to talk. "I will try to summarize the facts we know… since none of you are seeming to get a grip of a clear explanation. The first thing we know is that Gokudera was ordered to kill Tsuna's parents. However, there is a flaw in this, like the melon- I mean, _Daemon, _stated. With the age gap between the two boys, it is impossible that it was Tsuna's parents that Gokudera had killed." Lampo remained silent for a few seconds. "It's simply my thought, but I don't think it was Byakuran's orders to kill Tsuna's parents." The Vongola guardians, excluding Lampo himself and Alaude all instantly stared at their lightning guardian with both shock and curiosity.

"I wonder if you can explain more specifically, Lampo?" Giotto questioned, raising his eyebrows. He always knew that Lampo had a sharp side for figuring stuff out, like researching about enemy Famiglias and analyzing their weak points and strong points, but never got to use them, because Giotto was forced to give those kinds of missions to Daemon and Alaude – just to stop them from creating commotion in the cities. **(Please refer to Chapter 1.) **The lightning guardian simply shrugged it off, and supported his chin on his right hand. He finally started after drinking another cup of coffee.

"It's kind of obvious, don't you think?" Lampo said. "If you say Hayato is not lying, then that can only mean that the orders his father gave to him were right as well. When Byakuran ordered Hayato's father to kill of Tsuna's parents… there should've been something that wasn't overseen in that order." Lampo continued, and then paused, seeing the confused looks of a few guardians. He sighed, deciding that an explanation was necessary first. "Do you remember when Tsuna said, that his parents did die when he was very young? So young, that he barely remembers them? Then he should've been younger than 4, since he is 8 right now. However, if Hayato did kill Tsuna's parents, then it would've been when he was 6. Then it only makes sense that the ones Hayato killed weren't Tsuna's parents." Giotto's eyes widened at Lampo's explanation. "Then… the ones… that Hayato actually killed…" Lampo nodded. "They weren't Tsuna's parents."

"Then are you saying that the details of Byakuran's orders were incorrect?" Asari tilted his head to the side, and Lampo shook his head. "Byakuran's orders were probably correct. However, there is a possibility that he wasn't trying to kill Tsuna's parents off, but another boy's parents. At least, that's the only explanation that actually makes sense. And I am assuming that Hayato himself was also aware of that very fact – just didn't say anything about it, because he didn't know about the details of the story as well. He wouldn't know what to say when we ask the question, 'why?', after all." Lampo explained calmly, using helpful hand motions time to time, as the other guardians focused on him even more. For the time being, Lampo's deduction was the only thing that seemed to fit into the rest of the provided puzzle pieces, and until they found a better one that could replace it, they would need to stick with what they already had.

Giotto sighed, closing his eyes to think. _2 days… now less than two. If all of this was a mere dream that would be comforting, but I already accepted these kids into the mansion. It wouldn't be right, firstly, as a proper human being to throw these little children out of my business, when we already showed so much of our tenderness and careful personality. Surely, they do not need another heartbreaking betrayal done by adults, who had hurt them more than once until now. Whether that is the trashed, the used, the clueless, the secretive, or the hopeless… _Giotto opened his eyes again, and eyed his hand watch, where the needle was ticking away with the bright orange sky flames flickering in the center.

"2 days, and then we'll be transported to the future." Giotto opened his mouth after a moment of hesitation. The guardians looked up at him. "The first thing we need to do is use every possible method to bring back the kids – Hibari and Lambo. Daemon, Alaude, for once, I will allow you to go full strength on whoever we are going to face." The cloud and mist guardian blinked, wondering if they heard the orders correctly. Giotto never allowed the two to use the best of their powers – not even when they were eliminating an enemy Famiglia in their time. "When we go to the future, the second thing we need to make sure is the determine – who would be able to help us without any ulterior motives, and who is just to be marked as a mere outsider. From what I heard from Talbot, there are some people in future that are willing to support us. Though I can't be sure yet, since I haven't seen any of them face to face, it would be better than nothing if his words are true."

"Question." Knuckle cleared his throat. "Are we going to take the kids along with us?" Worry was printed on the sun guardian's expression, as Giotto sighed. "We will have to, without another choice. If Kyoya was acting as a spy until now, providing information about us to the Millefiore Famiglia in the future, that means that he had some kind of equipment that allowed him to do so. Seeing how their forces didn't come to our time yet, it seems like only Kyoya has the ability to transport himself back and forth through the two eras, but that won't go long. Eventually, they would be able to come to our time, and we don't know how much time we would spend in the future. It's dangerous to leave them alone here." Giotto responded. He also preferred to leave the kids at the mansion, but he knew that that would be risking too much, especially when their eyes weren't going to be on them.

"Well, isn't it a pleasant surprise." Daemon said sarcastically. "Out of all our descendants, _Giotto's _is the main villain. I wonder what the future has came to be." Elena nudged her boyfriend, and Daemon just scooted away a little. G glared at the mist guardian meaningfully, as Giotto sighed. "No human is right away evil from the start. There is always a cause, and that's how it should be. Though I'm guessing it's the poor treatment or lack of attention from elders when he was young…" The blonde just shrugged, tilting his coffee cup side to side with a bored expression. It was actually rather tiring to deal with two totally different descendants at once, and Giotto was troubled of how he was supposed to process all this sudden information. The amount of time that remained for preparations weren't exactly helping either – because in the future, he was sure technology wouldn't improved drastically (seeing by the flashlight, for example) and the forces should be armed as heavily as they could be. On the other hand, Giotto had himself to protect, along with his 6 guardians, with Elena adding by one. He had a total of 7 companions, when he was assuming that the other team had about a few million.

Finally, Giotto opened his mouth again. "Um, about the supporting forces of our side-" "Should be already taken care of." The blonde jumped in surprise as the door creaked open behind him, revealing an old man holding a small plate. Well, at least, it looked like a plate. A thick, metal plate with a bunch of switches. It was Talbot, of course. "I just received this odd shaped material – well, by some… weird folk. He told me in Italian to show this you young men, and Elena included, hopefully. Ah… let me see… I'm pretty sure he told me to press this red button right over here…" Talbot pressed a red colored button on the plate, and soon, a small hologram of a man appeared. Giotto and his guardians, and Elena, were of course greatly astonished – as they haven't seen such a machine for their entire lives.

"_If you are listening to me, and as a bonus, watching me talk in a form of hologram, then I assume that our men have succeeded in handing this over to you – Vongola Primo and his first generation of guardians." _The man continued to talk in a rather calm and robotic manner, wearing a black suit and a fedora. _"I'm a hitman, and my name is Reborn. I used to be the right hand man of Vongola Nono in our time, when I was very, very, young of course – but I had now quit the Vongola and stepped into another path. For further information and for your personal pleasure of gaining knowledge – I am the Sun Arcobaleno of this current generation – for you, it would be 400 years in the future._

"_I bet you have many questions about me right now. However, if I explain further from now and on, much time will be wasted for both you, and me. My comrades and my companions in the future have our own plans to schedule ahead in order to prepare for your arrival, and I am sure you have your own businesses to take care of before you can get transported to our time by – well, ah, the great inventor of the Vongola, Talbot from the past. Time runs short, Vongola Primo. We cannot keep two of your descendants safe under our eyes for long. Byakuran's defenses have become heavier and harder to stand against, and oppose. 2 days will be our limit. Until then, please find the quickest way possible to arrive here, and be fully prepared for what you are about to face. We are against Byakuran, your direct descendant that wants to discriminate Vongola itself. We need your support, and you should need ours. I wish you luck. Meet you in two days." _

The hologram of the male with the fedora disappeared. Giotto frowned, and so did his guardians. **(Please take quick note that in this story, the curse of the Arcobaleno are undone, but the Arcobalenos are still Reborn and Co. and they still keep their pacifiers.) **"Well, 2 days he says." Talbot chuckled. Rather forceful for someone who is in need, don't you think?" Alaude raised his eyebrows. "Certainly not the manners of a herbivore that is looking for strength." Talbot just chuckled even more at this reaction. The other guardians seemed to be at loss for words at all, and Lampo himself was just blinking from the sidelines, not knowing what was happening.

"Reborn…" Knuckle mumbled. "An odd name. And Arcobaleno? _Rainbow_?" The sung guardian, or priest, whatever you prefer to call him as – said, with a scowl on his face. "It's the song of the three elements." G grunted, as he lighted his tobacco with the candle again. "The clam – Vongola. The sea – Mare. The rainbow – Arcobaleno." Giotto rolled his eyes. "Millefiore's direct translation in Italian is a Million Flowers. Aren't you talking about the Tri-Ni-Set?" G shrugged, as he was about ninety percent sure that the Millefiore had the last remaining element of the 3 – the Mare Rings.

"Now the problem here isn't about the Tri-Ni-Set, right? At least, not yet." Lampo yawned tiredly, as he stretched his arms in the air, and the let out a sigh as he put them down again. "Our problem is what that hologram wants us to do – which is going to the future in two days, which just coincidentally happens to be the day our so called time machine is going to be ready. Until then, we need to prepare to face that "Great" Millefiore Famiglia. How are we going to do that?" Asari blinked a little and replied. "There's nothing really, that we can do right now. All we can do now is to gather more information." Lampo raised his eyes. "About?" Asari smiled, and then glanced at the door.

"Let's talk about it tomorrow."

_**THE NEXT DAY, DAY 22…**_

Yamamoto Takeshi yawned as he sat up on his bed. He looked outside the window – only to be greeted by darkness, except the light that slowly rising sun provided. Then he glanced at the grandfather clock that was ticking off noisily in the corner of his large room. At least, to him, it was large, compared to the ones in the orphanage – where one room was shared by 20 kids, and 1 bed used by 5. The room was smaller than six normal-sized bathrooms combined together – which meant that it was way too small to fit 20 kids. Even so, the adults didn't care – and Yamamoto wasn't sure whether the teachers noticed the state, conditions, and facility of the rooms or not. He stared at the ceiling as he laid back down on the comfy mattress, remembering the times when he used to be so jealous of the kids where some families – or sometimes it would be women who wanted kids but were single or who couldn't get pregnant – who would actually be willing to adopt the kids. Of course, some kind and generous adults adopted some kids out of pity – all because of how poorly they were treated. However, the kids who were always chosen to leave were the ones that looked better than the latter left. And as in looked better – Yamamoto meant the overall appearances and gentle auras they let out.

That reminded the boy back to his young ages – where he was about only 7 or 8, really – the memories were starting to fade – except the most detailed, the most painful, and the most bloody ones that he didn't just remember – but the memories that were carved into his very mindset. The scene where he saw a herd of men attack his house, guns in their very hands as they shot his parents down mercilessly, and as he saw the furniture of his very own apartment get flipped backwards by pure strength, and as the glass shattered into pieces. The manager and owner could do nothing in order to stop the men – as even the civilians knew of the power of the Millefiore too well. Yamamoto managed to escape, however, when the men were too busy searching the living room. He tiptoed out of the house in fear, reminding himself to not even make a single sound to attract the attention of the men.

Of course, a few seconds after he exited through the door, all the men noticed his actions and chased after him, full speed. Yamamoto, still being a little boy, was caught up fairly easily, and soon he found himself jumping down the series of stairs, tripping over when he landed in the wrong position. Yamamoto closed his eyes, flashing back from where he was making his hopeless escape.

_**FLASHBACK**_

_Tears. Sweat. Blood. Takeshi couldn't really tell those 3 forms of liquids apart after a few minutes of jumping down the stairs (as the elevator took too long to arrive) and limping as fast as he could out of the apartment. He was attracting attention of other people, and despite how young he was, even Takeshi knew that that wasn't going to be a good thing. He thought it was sheer luck that the apartment he was living in was just next to a park – an isolated park with barely anyone, but still a park. Maybe it was a bad idea to hide in an area that had limited boundaries – but Takeshi had a plan. He knew the ways of park more than anyone – maybe apart from the patrolling guard, but it didn't really matter. He thrust open the gates and ran like crazy. He pushed past the messy autumn leaves, and cried aloud – not very loud, but just enough to let out his frustration and grief._

"_The back door… the back door…" He whispered to himself quietly, as his eyes busily searched for the small metal gate that connected to the main crossroads. He jumped over, gasping when his foot got tangled in between the bars. He panted as his right shoe fell off, but didn't bother to wear it back on. He continued to run – well, rather jog – because he had no energy remaining in his small, young body to sprint – or even do anything close to that. People stared at him, and some even offered to help – but Takeshi brushed past the crowd, scratches now more visible. He could hear sounds of many footsteps behind him – whether it was from the men or normal civilians, he did not know. He just ran and ran, until he didn't know where he was going._

"_Catch him!"_

"_He's there!"_

"_The boy!_

"_For the sake of Byakuran-sama!"_

_Takeshi coughed blood, as he paused, a few minutes after he recklessly ran into an alley. There was always something that happened in obvious animations and movies. When a character was at run, and when there were people chasing behind that character – that character would always come to dead end. Takeshi never knew that it would happen to himself, as well. "No…" He looked up, but the wall was too high – and firstly it was too smooth to even climb. He spent much effort, but it proved itself useless. He cried once again, punching his bloody fists on the hard, concrete wall. "No…" He could hear them. The men were behind him. This was his end. He would follow the path of his mom and dad. "No…" He didn't want to die yet. He didn't._

"_Real men shouldn't cry – young or not, kora." Takeshi's eyes widened, as he felt a small pat on his head. The hand was large but warm and comforting. He looked up once again with hope, his face stained with sweat and salty tears. There stood a blonde man, wearing a green bandanna and military suit with a white shirt beneath his jacket. He had a gun hung loose around his shoulders, as he took it out and got into fighting stance very slowly. The little boy just stared, though did not say anything. "And I can't have you die just yet, for Luce's sake, and everyone's sake. I promised, kora." _

"_Promise?" Takeshi croaked. The man looked down at him for a split second, and then smiled. "Promise. I made a promise. A very important promise. To protect you. To protect you, until you can defend yourself. That is not soon, but I will not be able to take care of you for long. We will meet again, however. We will meet soon… when you're older, yes…" He trailed off, and then focused on the armed men in front of him. Takeshi was about to reply, but was blocked by a large bird that suddenly picked him by his clothes._

"_That's my pet, Falco." The man said, as Takeshi stuttered. "Your-your name." The man looked up, and then shrugged, as if it wasn't much of a big deal to announce. He didn't look away from his weapon and the men he was aiming at, and the opened his mouth before Takeshi was out of earshot._

"_Colonello. My name is Colonello."_

_**END OF FLASHBACK**_

He was helped by that mysterious blonde male – and soon sent to the orphanage (long story to that). He thought of his savior momentarily, keep reminding himself, that whenever that "time" to meet again comes, then he will definitely thank him properly. However, even after a few years, he couldn't see a trace of the male anywhere.

"Funny." Gokudera grunted, as Yamamoto jumped up on his bed, and quickly sat up. The silver haired boy was standing in front of the door, the shirt that G gave him to wear a little too big for him, that the sleeves hung loose and draped across the floor. "To see you awake this early." Yamamoto shrugged wordlessly, as he examined Gokudera closely. "What are you doing in my room?" Gokudera remained silent for a short while, and then just sat on the cold, wooden floor. "Just. I never seemed to, well, had an official conversation with you here." Yamamoto's eyes widened in surprise. One of the last things he expected was Gokudera to come to his room by his own will and start an actual conversation with a flow.

"I'm not doing this to entertain you, by the way." Gokudera grunted, and Yamamoto grinned sheepishly. "I'm here to ask you about something." Gokudera said again, and finally, Yamamoto listened with a serious expression. "The Millefiore Famiglia." The carefree boy narrowed his eyes in discomfort. Sure – it would be surprising if someone from the same era, and furthermore the same country as him – didn't know about the Millefiore and it's fearsome boss, Byakuran. However-

"The 8 clams." Gokudera looked up, leaning on the wall. Yamamoto's attention was abruptly gathered back to the silver haired boy. "The sea. The rainbow. The legend." Gokudera's eyes softened. "Our fate." Yamamoto stared at the boy. He knew the song. The lullaby that his mom used to sing to him when he was young, everyday before his eyelids would close and he would be off in dreamland. "Our… fate?" Gokudera didn't say anything for a while, until he stood up straight again and turned away.

"We will have to get ready."

_The time is close… the time of our death…_

Gokudera lowered his eyes and clenched his fists.

_Or the time… of a miracle._

_**THE FINAL DAY… MAY 31**__**ST**__**…**_

"So…" Talbot glanced at Giotto, as he stroked the surface of the machine that the blonde and his guardians were about to be transported in. "Are you ready, now?" Giotto stared at his guardians, and then the younger kids. Gokudera and Yamamoto were putting on uncomfortable expressions, and Tsuna wasn't saying anything – just clutching on Yamamoto's pants. Chrome grabbed the arm of Daemon, as Mukuro gazed off a little. He felt, well, lost. Maybe it was the effect of knowing that Hibari was actually siding with the Millefiore. He didn't know.

"Mukuro-kun?" Chrome whispered, and Mukuro jumped. He glanced at the girl nervously, and then looked away. _Another thing that bothers me… her voice… my dream…_ Always, in his dreams, a girl would appear. Her face was unclear, however – and he could only barely listen to her voice. The only thing he knew that the girl had similar features as him – with the indigo hair. And now, Chrome was in front of him. Mukuro found himself calling her Nagi – which he didn't know where it came from – but did so anyways because it sounded right.

"Everything is ready." Talbot said, puffing smoke from his mouth as he held his tobacco between his index and middle fingers. "Whenever you wish." He pointed at the small machine. "It can transport all of you at the very same time. I can't exactly well… hundred percent say and be sure that you guys will all be transported to the same place in the future… but you will soon be able to know where the main Millefiore base is, anyways. It would just prove you seven are idiots if you can't figure that out. Well, you have Elena with you so I guess that won't matter very much… but that just depends…" Talbot trailed off, as Giotto glanced at his companions one last time.

"So, should be go now?" they all nodded, and Giotto smiled. "Then, we will be going, Talbot." The old man nodded, as Giotto pressed the button of the machine, a blast of light wrapped them comfortingly, and soon they were gone – with another puff of pink smoke. Talbot sighed, left in the room alone.

"The future is now up to you, Giotto… what will you do?"

_**MAY 31**__**ST**__**, 20XX…**_

"It seems like they arrived."

"All scattered up, though."

"What would you expect? It's a rough time machine from 400 years ago. There is just no way it could be as accurate with locations as well."

"Surprising that Byakuran let you go at such an important timing, Verde."

"That's because he doesn't know that the Vongola would be coming now. He was planning to go to the past himself, after all." A green head replied, sipping his cup of coffee.

"So they seem to be divided into groups. About… 3 groups. One in Akita, one in Tokyo, and one in Chiba… yare, yare, they are all split up. For now, we will need to focus on the group that is in Tokyo, I suppose."

"Where is Fon? Did he disappear again with Mammon?"

"Obviously. Those two are always together, anyways. I am pretty sure Fon sneaked into the Millefiore base again. That guy was always so irritated with their men, after all."

"No one would like it if their cousin is being used by their own deadly enemy, you know."

"I suppose… by the way, where is Luce and Reborn?"

The door opened suddenly, and 2 people entered. One male, one female.

"The time has come."

"Finally? I was wondering when it would, kora."

Reborn looked up, his fedora revealing his eyes.

"It's the time of rebellion."

"It's the time for the sea to vanish."

**End of Chapter.**

**This chapter was supposed to reveal several things – the truth of Gokudera's past and Yamamoto's past – and the appearance of the Arcobaleno with their curse already broken. For those who were kind of confused there – here is the explanation:**

**What Byakuran told Gokudera's father was this – "Go kill the next heir of the Vongola." And along with the address. Gokudera's father, wanting to test out his son's strength, gives Gokudera the exact orders, and Gokudera heads to where the address guides him. As his father never gave him specifics about how the child looked like, he mistakes this other toddler as the boy he is supposed to kill, and kills his parents instead, and leaves the toddler alone. When he comes back, he tells his father that he wasn't able to kill the next heir of the Vongola, and he is kicked out of the house. The important thing here, is that Byakuran did all of this on purpose – he made the Scuro Famiglia assassinate that boy's family because of some other reason. This will be revealed as the story goes.**

**Yamamoto's past was pretty easy to understand until there for the most part, so I won't go into the details of it. Also, I wonder if you guys might be able the guess who the cousin of Fon is… this is all based on the KHR wiki, so if you read it this would be easy as a piece of cake. **

**Now here comes my replies.**

**Codename-Erza – Thank you very much for the nice compliments.**

**SerinasHarmony – Yes, Spanner. About why he is with Byakuran will also he told later on in the story, so stay tuned.**

**Frost190 – Saving Hibari and Lambo will appear later. About Mukuro, he only knows that the little sister he has in his dreams looks similar to him – he can't see the specific details of her face. He does feel a type of nostalgia around Chrome, as introduced in this chapter – and Mukuro cannot easily recognize her because her change of hairstyle and eyes – because remember, he can't see the specific details of her face, so it makes it kind of hard to see. Besides, his dreams are controlled by his illusions, so everything is a little vague. Thanks for the review, though.**

**SilverWhiteDragon – Spanner isn't hiding the fact that he is a Bovino – that is for sure, I can tell you, and the range that it doesn't become a spoiler. Because if Byakuran doesn't know, Spanner would've been in his army forces like other men, rather than the mechanic of the Famiglia. I hope this helped.**

**Knightcross – it was a nice thing that you noticed that age part. That makes a huge twist on Gokudera's past, after all. I am glad you like how I am carrying out this story, and yes, there will be a little bonding after all of this is over. Thanks for the review.**

**Guest – Here is your update.**

**Ghostunderasheet – Kyoya's story will be revealed later, and will also be followed and backed up by series of reactions from the kids and adults. Whether it will be good or bad, I can't say – but the only way to find out about this is to keep on reading the ongoing chapters!**

**Natsu Yuuki – Thanks for loving it, I guess.**

**Inulover305 – Tsuna's will come later, but here is Yamamoto's. I don't think I am that much of an amazing author, as I am still, well, 13, and I lack technique. It is nice that someone is fond of my writing style though. Thank you.**

**Orange3WhiteSkew – Maybe that dislike for him would change as the series goes and HIS story – Byakuran's story, of course – is revealed. Just saying. Thanks for the review, though.**

**See you next week.**

**~Meiko~**


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

_**20XX, June 1**__**ST**__**, CHIBA…**_

"Yare, yare, that was a rough landing…" Lampo sighed, as the pink smoke that once was engulfing him cleared. He glanced around his surroundings – though his first reaction was to wince at the condition of the atmosphere. "Such polluted air… what is this? Smoke? Dust? Ore-sama prefers to stay around in areas with fresh oxygen, you see…" Lampo noticed the cars parked at the edge of alley, and then scowled in confusion. "Are those…" He paused for a while. He observed the vehicle carefully, until he spotted the rubber tire. "Something like a wheel of carriage. Must be a transportation system of sorts."

"The future surely is a fascinating place." Asari popped up out of nowhere, as Lampo jumped and squeaked helplessly. He turned and saw Asari, Yamamoto, Knuckle, and Ryohei. "It's dark though. Well, time differences across countries, I suppose?" Knuckle shrugged, as Ryohei nodded. "There is a 8 hour difference with Italy and Tokyo. Since we left Italy at 4 in the afternoon, in Tokyo its 12. So basically it's June now." He explained, and the adults nodded. "It's the equator thing. Though the orphanage didn't teach us about it yet." Yamamoto added, though the adults didn't exactly know what the equator was.

"So, where are we?" Knuckle started off, glancing around their dark surroundings. He could occasionally hear the sounds of beeping horns, and loud crowds walking across the street. "Chiba. It's near my orphanage." Yamamoto said with a rather depressed expression. "I know this area well. I escaped the orphanage several times, so I'm used to the roads and everything… this area seems to be… well, my orphanage is in the center of Chiba, and I made some long escapes to different provinces in Chiba on foot so… ah." Yamamoto paused as he saw a sign standing in the sidewalks of the alley. "It's Narita."

"How far will that be to get to the Millefiore base?" Lampo questioned. "We don't have the currency of Japan in this era, so we will have to move by foot." Ryohei seemed to think about it for a while. "Chiba itself isn't very far from Tokyo. Since we're in Narita, by foot, it might take a few days or so, but we'll get there before… about June 3rd, I'd say, if we start right now. And you might've noticed, but the Millefiore base is in Tokyo to the extreme." Asari frowned. "Tokyo would be…" "Edo." Ryohei nodded helpfully, as Asari finally relaxed a little, glad that kids in the future seemed to be studying history well enough.

"So, where are we supposed to start? Takeshi, do you know?" Knuckle asked, and Yamamoto gave a troubled glance at the sun guardian. "No… I lived in Chiba for as long as I remember. I don't know much about Tokyo." The adults nodded, not blaming the boy. Whether Takeshi made wide ranges of escapes or not from his orphanage (and not to mention, caught all the way back again) it was rather challenging to move from major cities and so on. In Italy, it would kind of be like a little kid trying to walk from Rome to Naples. "I know." Ryohei replied quietly.

"You do?" Lampo raised his eyes. "How?" Ryohei shrugged, as if it was nothing that needed to care about. "I rode a train before, from Narita International Airport to Tokyo, where my family used to live. That was about 5 years ago, so it might've changed, but it's worth a try, isn't it?" The adults eyed one another, trying to read eachother's minds of whether to go with Ryohei's sense of direction or not. _Used to. _Knuckle noticed, and thought. _The frequent of usage of past tense of when he talks always bothers me… God bless him, who knows what happened. _

"Well… ore-sama thinks that's the only option we have for now… It's either that we're stuck here, asking around with the citizens of modern Japan in very ancient-styled Japanese, or actually walk according to someone's brain. Now, which?" Lampo asked rhetorically, as the others nodded in agreement, deciding that they did, indeed, didn't have a second option – at least, an option that was actually better than the latter. "Well, then on foot that is. Though, 2 days… that's a pretty good chunk of time. I wonder who was actually transported to the correct location?" Asari wondered out loud, as Lampo shrugged a little.

"It might be that none of us were actually transported to the correct place at all. Talbot did say his time machine was incomplete – and he made it clear, too. It surely succeeded in transporting us 5, into this era – and well, at least to a city near Tokyo. There is a faint possibility that the time machine wasn't able to hold the amount of people, and that's why we started at the exact same location, but didn't end up in the same one as well. We're now scattered – different places, and I surely I hope this didn't happen, but different eras. I doubt that though." Lampo said calmly, as Asari and Knuckle glanced at eachother. They both seemed to be thinking identical things – Why was their lightning guardian so serious and sharp, out of sudden? They gave a weird look at Lampo, as the neon green haired male narrowed his eyes.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" The other two guardians shook their heads rather abruptly. "Nothing. Just… wondering how good the weather was." Asari laughed lightly at Knuckle's excuse, as Lampo raised his left brow, but sighed and turned away. The 4 adults and descendants walked behind, Ryohei often yelling the directions, before thinking about it pretty hard, fumbling through his already pretty much faded memories – which added to the memories he didn't wanted to be reminded of. Lampo was the one leading the crowd (unexpectedly, if the others had to mention) with a grim expression.

_Lambo…_ Lampo thought, as he continued to walk briskly, looking at the ground mostly covered with damp dirt and cement. _My… family. _The he looked behind at Asari and Knuckle, both talking to their own descendants. The kids looked more relaxed than the previous month and weeks – if Lampo had to word it the cheesy way, then it was almost like the kids were at home – and they belonged, somehow, to the noisy crew of their vigilante Famiglia. He then remembered the little male descendant of his own – the cute black, curly haired boy who looked just like him.

_**FLASHBACK**_

"_What do you like to do?" Lampo asked, sitting on his own personal couch placed in his office, his legs on the table as he lazily signed the sheets of paper neatly stacked on his desk. He was helping Giotto out with his work – and at the same time carrying out a certain order Giotto had all told them to do – sitting in their respective offices until they finish their paperwork – with their descendants. Many complaints were shouted at the boss – especially from one red head, one melon head, and one platinum blonde – but Giotto didn't budge and simply ignored their desperate retorts. So now, here Lampo was, sitting in his office with Lambo, who was looking out the window. _

_The boy didn't respond for a while, and Lampo twitched, narrowing his eyes at the thought of being ignored by his very own descendant. "… I like to play hide-and-seek." Lambo said, and then paused. "And to read books about machinery and electronics." Lampo looked up, and frowned. "What are those?" Lambo narrowed his eyes, until he remembered that the person he was talking to was someone from 400 years in the past. "Hide-and-seek is a game where there is a person, usually called the 'it', catching other people who are hiding in a certain location. It's a fun game, but it's not very exciting when you're the first one to be caught. Machinery and electronics are basically a part of the studies of modern technology of the 21__st__ century and the 20__th__ century combined. It's interesting." _

_Both parties didn't say anything for a while. "Why did you like them?" The older male asked, as Lambo shrugged again. "Just because." Lampo, not able to understand what the boy was trying to say, just remained silent, writing his signature on the sheets of fresh paper. "I played hide-and-seek when I was young. With who, I don't remember. But I know I did it with someone… not Haya-nii, but someone else… and his hair was blonde. I wonder who it was." Lampo stopped writing. "Books about machinery and electronics are what Haya-nii introduced to me, though. I have a vague memory about reading about it when I was very young."_

"_Didn't you say that you were picked up from the streets, and Hayato was the one that took you in?" Lambo nodded at the question. "It is, indeed. But it wasn't like that from the start. At least, I think so." Lampo lowered his head and started writing again, as he placed another piece of paper on the stack to his left. A few minutes later, he was finally done. He stretched his arms as he yawned, and sat up from his chair tiredly. Lambo stared at him for a while, and then went back to observing the green scenery outdoors. Lampo thought for a while, as he stared awkwardly at the ceiling. Then he opened his mouth._

"_We can do it some time, I guess." Lambo frowned in confusion, as Lampo just remained silent. "Do what?" the boy asked after a long period of time – or as long as it seemed to be. "That so called Hide-and-Seek." Lambo rolled his eyes. "That game is only fun when it's done with many people." The older male shrugged. "Then we'll just invite the other adults and kids." Lambo's expression turned blank. He stared at Lampo, as if he was insane. "Are you serious?" Lampo scowled at the younger boy, as if he was the weird one. "You think I am not?" Lambo blinked, and then hesitated. "Then…" Lambo held out his pinky finger. Lampo stared at it, wondering what the boy wanted him to do. "Promise me." Lampo snorted lightly. Kids are still kids, he thought, as he curled his pinky around the little boy's._

"_A promise that is, then."_

_**END OF FLASHBACK**_

Lampo smiled a little, as he twisted his pinky around in his pocket. _Cute kid. _He then took his hand out and stared at it, and soon clenched it tight, making it into a fist. He looked up, and then sighed.

"I still have a promise to keep, I suppose…"

_**MEANWHILE, IN TOKYO…**_

"So dark… I am sure going to like this." Daemon chuckled. "It's a shame my dear Elena isn't here to enjoy this moment with me. And instead, I have a grumpy dog by my side, complaining why his master isn't with him…" An animated vein popped up comically on G's forehead. "A grumpy _what_?" Daemon smirked. "Nothing… just…. Talking to myself, that's all. Isn't that right, my dear Chrome?" Daemon hugged his descendant closed to him, as the girl blushed and nodded. G, not even being able to cuss violently because of the kids, just groaned and scratched his head like mad.

"Anyways, where are we? It's kind of dark, but there seems to those… weird standing stuff that gives out light block to block." Gokudera rolled his eyes, as G pointed out. "Those are called street lights, or street lamps, whatever you want to call them." G shrugged, and moved on. "Looks like a busy city." He commented, as Gokudera, Mukuro, and Chrome started glancing around the place as well.

"It's Tokyo." Chrome whispered quietly. "It's where the main base of the Millefiore Famiglia is situated." Daemon and G stared at the girl in surprise. Mukuro cleared his throat to explain. "You can see the Tokyo Tower, that's why." He pointed at the big, glowing orange structure a little far away. "It proves that we're somewhere around the center of Tokyo. Around Minato, I assume. The Millefiore base is located near Waseda, right in the center of To- well, to make it easier to understand for you people, I would say Edo. Its forces spread around the whole perimeter of the main base, and sometimes even further. It depends, really, each day. Now, their defense would've loosened a little, because Byakuran is probably focusing on how to go to the past."

"But it might be otherwise as well." Gokudera pointed out. "He's _the _Byakuran. Who knows what he is planning right at this very second?" Mukuro narrowed his eyes back. "Such negative statements are unnecessary. Our only chance is now, to actually go into the base and plan an attack." The silver haired boy spat in reply; "I am just merely explaining the bold truth you are seemingly attempting to deny." Mukuro simply growled. "I am trying to what?" The two adults sighed, as the intense argument continued. Being their descendants, continuous fights were rather expected – but inheriting such elements as well were totally needless.

"Enough." G said as he waved his hand in front of the two, stopping the commotion. "It's for us to decide whether to attack their base openly, or not. This way or that, the war and battle will be unavoidable, and it is something we will need to face someday. If Giotto was here…" G trailed off a little. _If he was here, there would be no such need for discussions in the first place. _"No, never mind. The first thing we can do is look for the so-called Arcobaleno dude with the black fedora. They should be close as well, as they seemed to be planning a rebellion against the Millefiore. Besides, they did say they would be waiting for us."

"That's reasonable." Daemon nodded. "And they might be able to know where the others are. Because obviously, we seem to be scattered all over this very country." The mist guardian pointed out, sounding rather discomforted. "Now, we can't help that." G replied, "Ours was a rather… basic time machine, if I should say. With the state of the technology in our time, it is even most impressive that we were even able to be transported to a whole new, different era in the future. My thanks will be presented to Talbot when we return." The storm guardian nodded, as Gokudera looked down and whispered.

"If we will even be able to return, that is." Daemon and G's eyes widened as they heard what the silver haired boy said, and stared down at him, startled at the negative remark. The boy didn't say any more, as G and Daemon glanced at one another worriedly. _This kid… always hopeless. Did he really inherit my blood? _G grumbled in his mind, as they started walking based on the directions Mukuro and Gokudera and Chrome gave them time to time.

"Wait." Mukuro stopped them, standing in their path abruptly as he quickly pushed them to the side. He eyed the men in black walking around the corners of alleys, some standing the middle of the road. Cars carefully went past, not wanting to bother with the men of the most powerful Famiglia in Japan – or possibly even the whole world. _They are making this many patrolling men at this time of the night? Sure, Byakuran always raises the amount of his forces during this hours of the day, but I wasn't expecting… _The boy bit his bottom lip. He turned towards the others who were giving him a confused look, probably except Gokudera, who seemed to be catching up quick on what was happening.

"It's the men in black." Mukuro muttered quietly. Gokudera narrowed his eyes. "They're from the Black Spell, then. What squad are they from?" Mukuro glanced again, until he saw a vibrant purple haired man walk towards a few of the men. "The 3rd squad. That means Gamma, the man of Lightning must be here somewhere…" Gokudera growled. "Gamma? That _Gamma?_ Can't you do something?" Mukuro glared at the silver haired boy. "Don't think that all the squad captains from Black Spell are friendly. They are undeniably the half that makes of the power of the Millefiore Famiglia – whether they were the Giglio Nero in the past or not. The only nice person I ever knew-" Mukuro paused, as he remembered the pretty female will dark hair, a small orange, flower-shaped birthmark under her eye. "I ever knew…" Mukuro trailed off, and then stopped. "Nothing." He sighed, and then focused on the men again.

"10… 11… 12…" Mukuro counted. "From what I see from here, there are about 14 men, but there's probably way more behind the walls and hiding in the alleys. It would be wise to go through another way, but I am sure other places are being guarded heavily as well. So, find another path, or break through?" He asked the adults, as G and Daemon glanced at one another. "If I was with Alaude I would say break through… actually, if it was only us, then I would say break through as well. But with you kids…" Daemon sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, trying to think of what to do.

"I do know how to fight, excuse you." Gokudera grunted, and Mukuro nodded as well. "You guys aren't the main problem I am concerned about. I know that you guys can fight better than an average man. The one I am worried about is Chrome here, you dense brats." Daemon corrected, as he grunted. Chrome jumped, as she clutched onto the shirt sleeve of Daemon.

"No need for such discussions." A sudden voice was heard behind them, as G unconsciously pointed his gun at the head of whoever it was, and Daemon released his mist flames as fast as he could. "Wait-wait-wait-wait-wait!" The voice stuttered nervously. "I- I'm your ally. I swear, I really am, on the name of my, uh, something. I was sent to you guys by the order of Reborn-senpai and Colonello-senpai. And well, Luce." G and Daemon lowered their weapons with a small scowl on their faces. The tall male in front of them was wearing make-up, with a leather outfit that motorcycle riders seemed to wear. His hair was a dark shade of purple, and his skin was pale. "My name is Skull, the cloud Arcobaleno."

"The _cloud?_" Daemon mumbled in disbelief. "What has really come to this time of the future? I have never met a shuddering cloud guardian even once in my whole life before." G grunted in agreement. "Not to mention, a cowardly one." Skull narrowed his eyes. "I'm not cowardly. Besides, for some reason, the attribute we received doesn't match our personality, excluding Luce. That's not my fault, is it?" He shrugged. Then he glanced at the forces of the Black Spell looming about a few meters away from them.

"This place is way too risky to share a proper conversation. Follow me. I will lead you to our base." Skull gestured, as Daemon and G glanced at one another, and then started walking. Mukuro and Gokudera seemed suspicious as ever, but came to a hard decision that they had no choice as well. Chrome simply clung to Daemon the whole time, shuddering time to time in fear.

"By the way," G started, as they went deeper into the dark alley. "Do you know where the others are? You seem to know us, so you better be aware of our companions, right?" Skull remained silent for a while. "Well," he started, "It is true that you people were all scattered when you first arrived. One group is only a few miles away from us, and another is…" Skull seemed to be calculating the distance from Tokyo to Akita. "Very far away. All of us decided to focus on you guys first, the only group that landed in the correct location of where you were supposed to." G nodded, as Daemon just simply shrugged and looked away.

They finally stopped after a few minutes of what seemed like forever, coming to the dead end of the alley. Skull went through the wall, as Daemon chuckled in his mind. _An illusion using high-classed mist flames. My, my, it seems like our supporters aren't half bad at this… _They all went through the wall – or rather an illusion that simply led to another path. In front of them there was a dark corridor, its walls made out of steel, metal, and though they weren't visible, cameras hidden in soundproof walls – just in case there was an invasion.

"This is our base – the base for the Arcobalenos. If you go down this staircase, you will immediately be able to gain access to the facilities here, after the permission of that snappy Rebor- I mean, Reborn-senpai. The name is Sotto Base – which basically means a base underground, but everyone calls it the AUB – Arcobaleno Underground Base, just to make it easier." Skull said, as he typed something into a small keyboard, as the first door opened quietly. They started walking again. "In a few days, the Varia will come for assist – thanks to Mammon and the numerous amount of people she **(In various sources, it says Mammon/Viper is a 'he', but it isn't officially verified anywhere – therefore I would make it a 'she'.) **knows, with her money business and everything."

"The Varia?" Daemon questioned, as Skull placed his hand on some kind of machine, as the second door opened. "It's Vongola's Private Elite Assassination Squad. Most of us, the Arcobaleno, ended our faithful ties and bonds whatsoever with the Vongola now, but Mammon is quite different. She was a member of the Varia in the past, and it seems like most of them owe her some kind of debt. And trust me, it isn't good when you owe something to Mammon – though it's nice when it's the opposite situation." Skull typed a second password into the third door. "They are fairly strong assassins, and they will be helping us in invading the Millefiore forces." Skull led them to a room, and then stopped. "This is where I will have to leave you. Reborn-senpai and Colonello-senpai will be waiting for you inside. Good luck." With that, Skull walked away, glancing at his watch, picking up his pace as he disappeared into the dark.

G twisted the doorknob, and entered the room. It was considerably bright, and the atmosphere was rather warm and welcoming. The color of the room was generally yellow, just like the color of the sun flames, and two fully grown males were sitting on a red couch in the middle of everything. "Greetings to you, G, the storm guardian, and Daemon Spade, the mist guardian of the first generation of the Vongola Family." The male with the fedora said with small smile that made the kids cringe with discomfort. "And our fellow guests." Reborn nodded.

"Funny, how you seem to know us very well – when we know nothing about you." Daemon sat down on the opposite couch, crossing his right leg, as he placed on top of his left. He simply Chrome settle down next to him, as G cautiously slumped down next to him. The boys just stood by the wall, just by mere suspicious instinct. "Let me list things off we know about you. I don't know who the blonde man next to you is, but whatever. You are Reborn, and you're an Arcobaleno. You need us to defeat the Millefiore Famiglia, just like we need you for the same purpose. But what is there to add?" Daemon lowered his upper body towards the sun Arcobaleno. "I think we deserve an explanation, for this abrupt call."

Reborn and Colonello remained silent for a few seconds. "Very well, then. We will tell you. Yes, it is true that all these meetings we called for are all sudden. More than the bare truth, you have just said. Let me apologize and introduce myself in a more civilized manner. My name is Reborn – though my real name, I can't say. This man next to me is Colonello, and he specializes in weapons of every sort." Colonello simply gave a polite nod. "Firstly, about how we know you – that will be rather straightforward. All of us, the Arcobaleno, were a part of the Vongola, or some kind of external force connected to the Vongola in the past. Some were members of the CEDEF, and some were supporters of the base of the Famiglia." Reborn paused, and then continued.

"In order to raise your social status – or rather, your rank, in the Famiglia to a higher place, you need to be knowledgeable, strong, and worthy of being qualified. Strength can be solved by training. However, knowledge is something you need to study for. The Vongola Exams test you about how much you know about the past of the Vongola, it's allied Famiglias, its enemies, and most importantly, the first generation of the Vongola – the ones that _built _the Famiglia. All of the Arcobaleno aced that exam, so it's obvious that we know you." G and Daemon eyed Reborn and Colonello, impressed.

"For example," Colonello cleared his throat. "The first boss – Giotto Ieyasu Sawada. The first man to unleash the power of the sky flames, and is also known as the most powerful boss in Vongola history. G – the greatest right hand man the mafia world has ever had. Supported his boss with extreme loyalty and power. Asari Ugetsu, the undefeatable swordsman, Knuckle, the supreme boxer of the Vongola – also the best healer ever recorded. The list goes on, continued by Alaude – also one of the strongest guardians ever known, and Daemon Spade, who went shoulder-to-shoulder with Alaude. Also, Lampo Bovino, the man who possessed the shield – and was deemed worthy of a guardian." The mist guardian and storm guardians of the Vongola stared at Colonello in awe.

"Fancy titles they gave us." G said, though he felt flattered in the inside. "Surely." Colonello smirked, as he folded his arms. Reborn cleared his throat. "To continue from there – is there anything else you want to know? Because then we need to make some preparations for you." G glanced at Daemon, as the mist guardian shrugged and opened his mouth. "If I need to ask, I was just curious – why is your base so nearby to the Millefiore's? In my opinion that is very risky – even if your main entrance is very well hidden with high classed mist flames and illusions, it doesn't change the fact you are exposing yourself to the enemy."

"That cannot be helped, really." Another voice appeared in the scene. An indigo haired female stepped into the room, as Colonello jumped in surprise and quickly stood up from his seat. The female took his place and sat down, folding her arms. "Most of us work in the Millefiore Base. Forcefully, of course. Byakuran doesn't know that some of us are still alive, but well. Verde works at the laboratory with his cousin, Luce is the second-in-command for the whole Famiglia and the boss of the Black spell, so on." G raised his eyebrows. "And you are…" The female nodded. "I'm Lal Mirch."

"We are doing a fairly good job hiding our plans from Byakuran. Though I hope Fon wouldn't be the reason for our identity being revealed. He's our storm Arcobaleno. I think you'd be surprised if you meet him." Reborn grinned a little. "He looks very similar to a certain somebody among your gang, so he would release a familiar aura. But he holds a totally different personality, so it might be rather startling." He paused once again, and then continued. "Any more questions? And by the way, your comrades will be arriving to our base soon, I assure you. They have the assistance of two of our best members – Fon and Mammon. The group in Akita will take about 4 days to arrive, since they are all moving on foot, but time will go by very soon."

"What are the preparations you have to make for us?" Daemon leaned back on the comfortable couch, cracking his neck a little. Reborn, Colonello, and Lal Mirch glanced back at eachother back and forth, as if they were having quiet but intense debate about who was going to explain. In the end, Colonello opened his mouth to speak. "It's about… well, increasing your strength, I should say, kora." Daemon and G listened attentively. "The Millefiore Famiglia is an exceptionally grand Famiglia now. It has been growing ever since it was made, and it is now almost at the peak of it's power – which, is fully capable of completely crushing the Vongola and it's very few remaining allied Famiglias at its current worn out state."

"So?" Daemon asked impatiently. He was expecting such poor circumstances. Colonello continued. "We ended our ties with the Vongola, as Reborn said earlier. This means that we will not be holding hands with them – leaving Varia out as an exception. The supporting forces we have – the _only _supporting forces we have – are our own bodies, the small but influential power of the Varia, the spies we planted in the Millefiore base, a few members of the Black Spell that work with Luce, and finally, you." Colonello pointed at the two of them. "That's the main reason why we called you to our era. Well, I am presuming you would've arrived anyways, seeing how that Bovino kid is being held hostage due to what the cloud boy did."

"Now, to summarize what you're saying… or what you are about to say, either one," G cleared his throat. "You want us to train, or whatever, to increase our physical and mental strength in general, in order to gain the power to stand against the current force of the Millefiore Famiglia. Am I right?" the 3 Arcobalenos nodded. "And I am also assuming that you have all those facilities ready so that we can accomplish that goal, yes?" They nodded again. "Then that's good… we can do that. But I think you have something more to add."

Reborn smirked. "As expected of G. Your interpretation skills are exceedingly impressive. Not to mention, your natural instincts surprise me. Yes, there is indeed more. In truth – and the most purest intentions possible for us – we want the children to go through the training as well." G and Daemon immediately narrowed their eyes in discomfort. "You want," Daemon started. "These vulnerable kids to train? Go through all that physical pain and to be strained mentally, after all that they already went through?" G was startled at the mist guardian's calm but furious outburst. It was almost what Giotto would've said, if he was here.

"Pain brings people power." Reborn stated quietly. "And besides, it's not like I am exactly fine with this idea. I personally go against it. However, we don't know what will happen. Especially when we don't know what Byakuran might've done to Lambo and Kyoya…" Reborn trailed off. "… It's not good. You people are not aware of what happened to Kyoya yet, aren't you?" The two adults shook their heads. "Then it's better to leave it at that. The time to know will eventually come. But now, we really need to hurry. Byakuran will make his move any time soon – and he probably now even knows that you arrived in this era. It's a piece of cake for him, after all." Reborn stood up. "Follow me. I will lead you to the places you will all need to go respectively."

They were led to a room each – and soon, the kids were separated as well. Chrome didn't want to be left alone – she especially wanted to remain with Mukuro, and for some reason, Mukuro didn't want to let her go on her own either – but Lal Mirch assured them that they will meet soon. Gokudera went into his, wordless, and soon the others were all in a training room, made for each of different purposes.

G sighed, now left by himself, after receiving simple instructions and points about his room. He released his storm flames, and the room's system activated itself automatically. G destroyed the metal comets that were falling and aiming for him from the ceiling one by one with his gun. He gritted his teeth, as several explosions went off all at once in an intense manner.

_Giotto, where are you…_

_**ON THE OTHER HAND, OFF IN AKITA…**_

"My, my, so dark…" Elena mumbled, as they continued to walk along the road. It was almost 2 in the morning, and most of the stores were closed, and people were gone – with the exception of a few drunk men, and poor pedestrians looming around aimlessly. "I am glad I am wearing my most comfortable outfit." Elena said, as she glanced down at her silky green pants and white blouse, with her leather boots that had no heels. It was the clothing she wore when the Vongola was out in the battlefield, fighting with an enemy Famiglia. She would often join in, and support the others with her own mist flames.

"Well, at least we know where we are going. The map did say that Millefiore base was somewhere in Tokyo." Giotto said, as Alaude grunted. "That will undoubtedly take at least 5 days to go by foot." Giotto shrugged. "If we can't earn public transport because we are short on money, then we can simply get one from somewhere. I also saw that there was a base of an allied Famiglia of the Millefiore here somewhere. I think their name was the Gesso… that's where we are headed right now, anyways."

"Well, that's some scary statement to make in front of a kid, Giotto." Elena glared meaningfully, carrying a sleeping Tsuna in her arms. "He's sleeping, though…" Giotto protested, as Elena rolled her eyes. "It's called, you don't know when kids are pretending or not. Though, I will go over it for now. Are you sure you know the exact location of the Gesso Famiglia's base, Giotto? Are you sure the map was correct?" Giotto nodded, as he turned another corner. "Yes, I am pretty sure it was…" the 3 all paused and stared at the sight in front of them. "Here…" A building – or what seemed like it used to be a building – was in ruins, destroyed in a devastating manner. _It hasn't been more than a few hours… _Giotto thought. _Who might it be?_ Alaude scowled, as he saw a few men fly up into the air from the side of the tall ruins. A shadow appeared in the midst of the dust, as Elena took a few steps back, with Tsuna in her arms.

"This horrible stench…" Giotto crinkled his nose. "Smells like garlic." Alaude scowled as well, as the shadowy figure started walking out of the ruins. Giotto noticed the unnaturally long hair the person possessed – that was neatly braided to the side. The person stopped, the long cloth of his top flapping side to side at the cool midnight wind.

"Well, well… that was a pleasant fight. Though the Gesso is really no good at battle, they always have nice strategies that aren't half bad… very interesting." The voice spoke quietly, as if it never noticed Giotto and his lot. When the dust cleared up, Elena gasped a little, and Giotto stared at the person is pure disbelief. Alaude seemed to be mystified by the sight that folded up in front of his very eyes. The male finally looked up and stared back – in shock, if Giotto had to add.

"I did hear from Mammon that there was going to be guests in Akita today… but I never knew it would be…" the male smirked, as he walked towards Giotto. "Vongola Primo, is it?" He smiled – something Giotto didn't expect from a person that held such resemblance with Alaude. "I understand this is rather sudden, but it's my pleasure to meet you. The storm Arcobaleno, Fon, at your service." He bowed politely, as Giotto blinked a little. "Um, hello, sir Fon." Fon smiled. "No need for the honorifics. I am also one of the direct descendants of your cloud guardian over there, after all." Elena's expression softened. "Then that explains your appearance. Though, you seem to be way more… well, less frustrated than Alaude and his other descendant." Alaude gave a look at Elena, as Fon chuckled.

"You are talking about Kyoya, yes?" He asked, and Elena nodded. "He is my cousin. I used to keep an eye on him, but…" Fon trailed off a little, as his expression saddened a little, as his smile vanished. "Nothing. Sorry for that." Fon paused, as he inhaled a deep gust of air. "You need to go back to where your comrades are, yes? Well then, I think I can help you with that. It would usually take a few days, if you walk… but for now, we will use these." Fon said as he pointed at the motorbikes that were parked far away.

"What are those?" Giotto asked. Fon smiled. "A small transportation system. With enough fuel, if I should add. They are good stuff, and in a matter of hours, we will be there in Tokyo. Hop in." Fon got on his own, with Elena riding on the remaining back seat with Tsuna in her arms. Fon handed her a helmet, in which she was rather confused on how to really wear – until Fon put it on for her. Elena thanked the male, as Giotto and Alaude adjusted to the new machine for a while. Alaude got used to it fairly easily, figuring out how to use the controls, and Giotto also got the knack of it after trying a few times.

"Are we ready, then?" Fon asked, as they all nodded. Alaude simply shrugged, as he started the engine. The loud sound made Tsuna wake up, but Elena soon hushed the boy back to sleep.

"Well… here we go."

_**SOMEWHERE IN THE MILLEFIORE BASE…**_

A boy was lying down in the middle of the cold metal floor, his body half covered in red blood and stained with what seemed like dirt and sweat.

"_Did you know, Kyoya-chan? Dolls that are done with use are trashed into the rubbish bin. Your mission is finished. You successfully delivered me the Bovino boy, which will finally trigger that idiotic Spanner to do some work. I have no more use for you."_

"_Disappear."_

The boy grunted as he turned to side, his hand unconsciously clasping his broken legs in pain. He hissed as he touched the raw wound, and turned to opposite side again. He was used to abuse and neglect. He was also used trying to stand up against the harsh attacks, and attempting to act strong, but failing. It was useless to plan a rebellion against Byakuran. He knew his efforts would prove itself unnecessary, and again, he would be the trashed doll that was done with use.

_Finding the backstories of the kids of the Vongola for nothing. Tricking an annoying pineapple for nothing. Murdering thousands of men for nothing. Capturing a Bovino for nothing. _Kyoya thought, his right eye half closed. _Everything I did for my whole life, for nothing. _Now, after all he did for Byakuran, the man was going to kill him, just like this. Kyoya glanced at the cell door that was wide open. It was a message of Byakuran – "You can escape whenever you wish. Just remember that you will always find yourself in your little cage all over again. Your efforts are useless, Kyoya-chan – you know that, don't you?"

He gritted his teeth in frustration. He hated being looked down at. He hated it, and despised it so much, and yet he couldn't do anything about it. Yeah, one hell of a carnivore he was. He sighed heavily as he stared at his bloody hand that was covered in bruises. _I want to live. _He thought. _I need to escape. So why am I not doing that? I know it's the right thing to do, and yet…_ Kyoya eventually chuckled to himself, his arm dropping by his side.

"It's herbivorous. So herbivorous…"

Once again, there was heart to be mended.

But Hibari Kyoya knew efforts were futile.

He knew it a little too well.

**End of Chapter.**

**Finally, the rising action and suspense begins. Not all of the Arcobaleno are introduced, but they will appear sooner or later. And yes, the Varia does appear in this story… as how I changed my mind. I didn't want a character overload, but I suppose I will be able to control them, since most of you reading this story should know all the characters that made their debut so far – as they are all characters that make their entrance in the anime. **

**This chapter was pretty much straightforward, with a small update on the state of Kyoya and everything. Man, Byakuran is harsh. But he has his reasons, as what will be revealed later on. It's a shame that I can't show hints of Byakuran's past, just yet. It has more than just was is shown on the previous chapters – just like all he pasts of the other kids are. **

**If any of you are confused about anything in this story, please write it down in the reviews. I understand that there are some elements I don't clarify very well in the chapters itself, so yeah…**

**So now, here goes the replies to all the lovely reviews I received!**

**Inulover305 – Thank you very much – I appreciate the fact that you like my writing, and my chapter.**

**YamiKeitsuki822 – was that little too much for a cliffhanger? It's good if you enjoyed it, but… oh well. Thank you for the review.**

**Queenbee – It really depends. I try to make all their stories sad – and Tsuna's past has a twist like all the others.**

**Zairaswift – I am very happy that you are enjoying my story. Being up at 2 am is very hard though… make sure to get enough sleep.**

**Frost190 – I am glad I made things clear for you. Please inform me in the reviews again if you have anything more to add. I apologize if I word my chapters in a confusing manner, as well.**

**Natsu Yuuki – I am glad to hear that you will always love my story. That's very nice of you.**

**Ghostunderasheet – Ah, yes, me and my taunts. That always seems to be a problem, don't you think? And well… the Arcobaleno will be appearing frequently as the story goes, so I guess you can look forward to it.**

**This chapter was over 7000 words… it's the longest chapter I ever wrote. Thanks for the support, guys.**

**~Meiko~**


	11. Author's note

**AUTHOR'S NOTE!**

**So hello, guys. I know I haven't made an update for quite a while, and I am really sorry for that. However, I just really need to say that this would unfortunately continue for quite a while.**

**Um… so to make it as short as possible, I never knew 7****th**** grade would be this tough. I have been bombarded with projects and tests nowadays, and I guess I never really had any time for writing. But the thing is, because of that my body has been quite worn out over the time. I was only allowed to get sleep for about 4~5 hours, due to studying and some donation projects that our school is holding (being elected as one of the five leaders certainly didn't help). I was okay for the first week, but I guess… it kind of got hard for me to continue for a month. **

**So to simply be said, because of my body condition, I don't think I will be able to write for a few more weeks. I have an SAT exam coming in 2 days as well, so… yeah. And I also wanted a break, because I wanted to catch up on watching more anime and stuff.**

**Sounds like an excuse, I know. But well, I guess I still need a rest. **

**I will try to come back soon.**

**~Meiko~**


	12. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

_**WASEDA, MILLEFIORE MAIN BASE…**_

"How's it going?"

"Hm? Fine…"

"And there's nothing I need to help with?"

"No…"

"I see. Well, you're skilled, I know. We're the only mechanics in the Millefiore Famiglia, so this is expected. Then I will go take a nap, ok?"

"Mhm." The door closed with a click, as the blonde removed the candy from his mouth. "Very tiresome… very tiresome this is…" He sighed, as he rolled up the sleeves of his green jumpsuit. "All that hard work, and they are back. Now they need to experience of having to travel between 2 different bases every night…" The blonde stood up, changing into his white T-shirt and changing into his green trousers. He exited the room, leaving the lights on, and turning the switch of the recorder to a reasonable volume – to make it sound like he was at least tinkering with some kind of machinery.

Suddenly, his phone rang, as Spanner rolled his eyes and groaned. "I'm still at the base so will you-" "Spanner, emergency." Spanner narrowed his eyes at the speakers. "Which emergency?" He asked in a rather sarcastic manner at the mad scientist. Verde sighed lightly at the other side of the line. "The reactions of their 'coming' is happening faster than I thought it would. At this rate, Byakuran will notice." Spanner blinked a little, glancing backward to see if anyone was there. "He will have to notice sooner or later. Let it be." Verde grunted on the other side in slight agreement.

"It's Mr. I-am-the-great-sun-dude's orders. Activate the IB System for now, but turn it up only a notch so that the Funeral Wraths won't sense it." Spanner snorted at the small nickname Verde called Reborn, as he clicked open the door to his laboratory again. "How long are you going to make the IB System go? No matter how thin we're going to set it up as, they will notice in less than the span of a few hours." Verde hummed cheerlessly, and replied. "4 hours. That'll be enough, seeing the pace of Fon and Mammon right now." Spanner nodded as the line went dead. He opened up his laptop and touched the screen to activate the IB System by Level 1, and set the timer as 4 hours. **(IB System. Meaning, an illusionary barrier system, that hides the Dying Will Flames of others around or inside the boundary of Japan. This prevents from unknown flames being censored from the Millefiore Quarters. An invention of Spanner and Verde.)**

He then shut down his laptop again, and left the room. He turned off all the security systems with his ID, and then went straight through the corridor, turning the system back on as he did so. He stopped walking abruptly in front of a dark entrance – it was path that led to the secret cells and Estraneo laboratory areas. _Lambo…_ He gritted his teeth, as he continued walking with a solemn expression, his hands in his pockets as he sucked on his lollipop. He phone his rang again – loud – as Spanner jumped, and quickly picked up. "_My Lord, _what in the world-" "Spanner, I want you to be here by 10 minutes. We are calling for a meeting." The blonde slapped his forehead and the forcibility of the Arcobalenos. "It takes at least 30 minutes even on my bike to reach your base. And Fon borrowed all my bikes and I don't have spares anymore-" The sun Arcobaleno cut him off. "Then fly. Or do something. It's now 9 minutes." The line went dead again, as Spanner groaned. He glanced at his watch. It was 4 in the morning.

"Now, what do I have here…" He stared his few belongings, but failed in finding something that could go in the place of a vehicle. "I suck at running… now what?" He glanced at the shot guns he had – it was a special gun that would shoot dying will flames in a great mass – the force was so powerful, that it will make the shooter fly backwards if not careful. It was modeled off the gloves of the Vongola Primo, that could release continuous sky flames in overwhelming quantity and value – with speed. _Maybe…_ Spanner sighed, as he quietly stepped out to the highest floor of the base.

He shot towards the ground as he jumped off the area, as a ball of sky flames set him upward. Spanner grunted, his arm aching from the force already. He was going fast in the air, but it was rather challenging to keep the balance. A few pedestrians would stare at him in awe, but Spanner hoped they would mistaken him as a shooting star. He had to stop shooting very abruptly – because the speed was so fast, he almost flew past his destination – which was hidden, and that didn't exactly help. He crashed down on the ceiling of the concrete building, as he groaned in pain. The call of the Arcobalenos were going to be death of him someday, surely. He went through the secret doors as he entered the passwords into the screen.

"I'm here." Spanner announced as he opened the door of the meeting room without knocking. He paused to see the number of different faces present – and ones that he didn't notice at all. Firstly, there were all the Arcobalenos except Fon and Luce. That was expected. What he didn't expect was Mammon to arrive already – since the group started at Chiba. Then there were the other adults, excluding the kids that seemed to be elsewhere for now. And he also saw someone who he didn't really want to see – his one and only ancestor that looked exactly like his brother but not him – Lampo Bovino.

"Hello, Spanner. I am impressed you came right on time." Reborn smirked, as Spanner glared, taking his seat between Skull and Colonello. "Thanks to someone, I think I broke a few bones on my back." His ancestor was giving him an uncomfortable look, in which Spanner didn't care as much – since he was about the same age as the male. "Verde cleared his throat. "Can we start the meeting now? I believe all the necessary participants are all here, and furthermore, it won't be long until the IB System we activated turns off." Reborn nodded, as he opened his mouth to start.

"First of all, I want to welcome our Vongola Famiglia, the first generation – to our base, the Sotto base – or the AUB, whatever you prefer, but to some of your native tongue, I know that the Sotto base will be easier. But anyways. We have all assembled here, to discuss our future plans and our current major issues we would want to talk about as a group. Now, it would be nicer if our boss and advisor were present, but it seems like they won't be coming any soon. Therefore, we will just begin." Reborn paused and glanced at Colonello. The rain Arcobaleno sat up on his chair, putting his left arm on the table.

"The threat of the Millefiore Famiglia and its forces are what we need to discuss about, out of all the topics we are capable of covering. A few defense and offense armies and troops they have are very powerful, and so are their leaders. As far as I know, there are also those who possess the Mare Rings, which isn't a good sign, you see… Verde, what are the current locations of the troops again?" The green head typed some random words on his keyboard, and then scanned the map in front of him. "Three in Tokyo, three in Osaka, one in Akita, two in Chiba, and then small groups of men divided into several flame attributes are guarding the boundaries of each province and district." Colonello shrugged. "So you heard."

"So, what do you plan to do?" G questioned. "If their men are all over the place, we basically have no chance in attacking their base in a secretive manner." He commented, as Reborn nodded. "That is very true. Even with the majority of us trying to memorize the passages of their base, we still haven't perfectly managed our movements – nor theirs. Byakuran is a sly man. We don't know what he will do at all, and how much he is willing to risk – than all the sacrifices that were already made for his selfish purposes." Daemon leaned back on his own chair and asked. "What is his purpose doing this, anyways? Is it worth it, really? I would really want to know."

"That's what we have been trying to gather information on – and all we could figure out was that he's trying look for someone." Mammon said, as she sipped her small box of strawberry milk. The first generation guardians frowned. "To kill so many people just to look for someone… wouldn't it be way more simpler to just send hordes of men and search?" Asari questioned with a frown on his face. Skull clucked his tongue. "That is very true – but you see, as far as I got to know-" Reborn looked up, and then glared. "What do you mean, as far as I got to _know? _Are you keeping something from us, Skull?" Skull gulped.

"… Of course not. The information wasn't confirmed so I was just-" "Say it." Reborn demanded, as Skull cleared his throat nervously – very nervously, if everyone in the room had to add. "W-well, it was just the rumors, when I slipped into the Estraneo Laboratories – I heard two scientists talking about this matter – and I listened. It sounded like the Vongola, and this person that Byakuran was looking for – had some kind of connection – but for some reason, the Vongola 'trashed' this person away." Skull explained, as Knuckle tilted his head to the side. "How is that related to Byakuran, I wonder?" "Who knows. That's all I could hear, because I was running out of time before the IB system was deactivated, you see."

"Information of the Estraneo… well, that might just as well be useful as it can be. Their sources, rumors or not – are usually very accurate. If they were talking about such a topic, then it must be true." Colonello said, as the others nodded in agreement. "Now, the question is – who is Byakuran exactly looking for, and why. There must be some kind of relation between them, right?" Lal Mirch asked, her arms folded, as Verde, the Lightning Arcobaleno raised his eyebrows and replied. "Who knows? They might have nothing to do with one another – and Byakuran just wants this random somebody. I consider it a possibility."

"Highly improbable, but yes, a possibility." Reborn sighed. "But anyways. Enough about that. How were our facilities?" The sun arcobaleno glanced at the first generation. Asari was the first one to respond. "Very advanced. And very sophisticatedly created, if I should add. I am guessing that one of you here designed it?" Mammon nodded. "Spanner and Verde. The Bovino produced many creative inventors – I don't know what happened to their ancestor though." Lampo glared at the female. "Well, excuse me. I apparently had no talent in tinkering with machines, you see. Instead, I possess what other Bovinos weren't born with – if I may very politely add." Verde smirked. "Well, yes. Which was passed down to me. Your information analyzing skills, was it? A talent of yours that Vongola Primo valued highly – more professionally done than Alaude's, I heard."

"Those skills of his sure are useful stuff, but I really wish he would contain more common sense." G grunted, as Lampo gave the right hand man a filthy glare. "I was enjoying the moments of flattery, but alright." Reborn tapped his index finger on the table in a thoughtful manner. "Byakuran's true motive." He finally muttered, as the attention focused on him. "If we get to know that, then we might be able step closer to our victory. However…" Colonello eyed the arcobaleno.

"It's disturbing you, ain't it?" He paused. "The fact that Nono is hiding the true identity of Byakuran – and his birth." Reborn nodded at the remark. "Nono was always careful and touchy about that topic. Why be bothered – when it's about your own son? There is nothing to veil or cover, when everyone should already know that he is your very own…" Verde fixed the position of his glasses. "Unless, he is not your blood-related son."

"Now this is…" Knuckle frowned. "This is unheard of. I thought Byakuran was one of Giotto's direct descendants." "He is. At least, when I checked his DNA… Oh, yes, right… Why haven't I considered this? For me to not notice the obvious… yes, yes, this is a very peculiar thing." Verde mumbled to himself, as he closed his laptop and sighed. "What do you mean?" Reborn frowned. "It was so obvious. Nono _isn't _Primo's direct descendant. Then it doesn't make any sense in the first place that Byakuran had the same DNA and the reactions as Primo."

"I don't think I am catching on. We don't know who Vongola Secondo is, in the first place." G replied, as Daemon nodded. "Vongola Secondo was… well, history lesson of Verde starts now. Before… you came down from your position as the first boss of the Vongola, you chose your successor as Ricardo, who became Vongola Secondo. You two were related in a sense that you both contained the Blood of Vongola, but you weren't _really _related in true, literal blood – as in a family. And then… Vongola, basically, started going downward. Nothing improved really, when you, sir…" Verde glanced at Daemon. "Betrayed Primo and joined Secondo's family." Daemon frowned.

"Me? Betrayed Primo, you say?" He questioned in an obscure, manner – as G raised his eyebrows. "It didn't seem to have happened yet, and now that everything has changed… I don't know what will happen, really. But that happened, in this world. Nono is a part of the family line of Secondo – at least, that's what I am guessing. **(Really, even if you know this isn't real, it's for the story. Please, provide grace.) **That's why it doesn't make sense that Byakuran has Primo's DNA. I should've noticed this way sooner… to think that I would overlook such an important piece of information…" Verde pinched the bridge of his nose as he took off his glasses.

"Now, now, I didn't notice it as well. No need to feel all sappy and guilty about it." Spanner yawned, as he sucked on his lollipop. "However, this is very interesting. Does Byakuran know about this?" Lal Mirch sighed. "I would say yes, but truth to be said, the percentage of him not knowing would be higher. However, who knows? It just might be the reason why Byakuran is planning for the destruction of Vongola." Colonello smirked. "You mean, 'another' reason, kora." "Progressing on-"

Suddenly, an alarm went off, and the lights turned on to the shade of bright red. The Arcobalenos stood up, as Spanner ran out of the room to check the cameras. The adults slowly got out from their seats, grasping the handles of the chairs. Spanner came rushing back in the next second. "In- intruders. Squad eight. Leader, Glo Xinia, two other high-leveled workers follow Gingerbread and Cappuccino, with about sixty to seventy other men." He panted, barely being able to form words. The Arcobaleno ran out, and then suddenly Daemon stopped in his tracks. "The kids." He whispered. "G, the kids." He said a little louder, as G bit his lip, along with the other adults that each had troubled looks crossing their eyes.

"I know." He mumbled, as he ran upstairs instead – the opposite direction the kids were heading. They all slammed the door of the room where the kids were sleeping – and found them all huddled up together, with the exception of a few – like Mukuro and Hayato who were preparing to launch attacks on the enemy. When they realized it was the adults, the relaxed immensely – though they continued to glare, their weapons securely in hand.

"What's happening?" Mukuro asked. "Something bad." Knuckle replied, as Hayato rolled his eyes. "Obviously, I can easily tell that. We are implying to who is it that is making this happen, right now." G stuttered for a while, not knowing where to start, until he just grabbed a random hand of one of the kids and dragged them out. Five adults, five kids. Perfect. One adult needed to take one kid. Fairly simple – and yet the right hand man could easily tell that this wouldn't go as nicely as he wanted it to be.

"Don't touch me." Mukuro pulled his hand out of Daemon's rather unintentionally, as the other adults all rushed out of the area. The illusionist's expression softened, as he let go of the boy's hand. "Then at least run. We don't have much time, anymore." Mukuro slowly nodded, as they closed the door behind them. Skull was waiting for them at the side of the corridor that led to the emergency exit. "What were you doing? They already came in halfway through!" The cloud Arcobaleno muttered.

"Was anyone harmed?" G asked hurriedly, as they all ran in full speed. "No, not yet. We put the emergency barriers and all the booby traps left activating. That would hold them off for a while – however, it won't be for long. Glo Xinia is strong – and so are his co-workers. If we linger about, then it would be a matter of seconds before we get caught. Even if my curse is unsealed now, I don't know how many of them I would be capable of holding back…" Skull trailed off, as he kicked the metal door open easily. "I'm serious. Just run now as if you have no other care in the world."

"Skull." Mammon called, and Skull glanced at her. "What? I thought you ran away." "I didn't run away. I came to check on you. Can't you see? Glo Xinia's army is right behind you. I'm not even joking." Skull rolled his eyes and groaned. "I _know._ But-"

"Stop!" The group frowned, as Skull and Mammon stood in front of them and held them back. "You are surrounded. We, fortunately for us, and unfortunately for you, will need to take you to our Boss – orders, and all those formal words we exchange. If you don't struggle, that makes it better for both parties, don't you think?" Glo Xinia, the leader, apparently, stepped in front. Skull raised his head in a stubborn manner, as Mammon sighed, and then took in a deep breath.

"Your boss might be expecting us, but _our _Boss expects us too. And as two groups in similar situations, I hope you understand what kind of circumstance we are in, as well." The cloud Arcobaleno replied, as Glo Xinia scowled, his glasses out of its original position. "The orders we received from Byakuran-sama were fairly simple and easy to comprehend – and we want to get his orders through your thick headed minds. He wanted all of you, in his base, and all the remaining direct descendants of the Vongola to be separated from whoever their companions are. And also, to call up the betrayers – but that does not concern the lot of you." Mammon smirked.

"By betrayers, I guess you are implying to our fellow mechanics?" Glo Xinia nodded hesitantly, as if he was bothered by their rather sarcastic reaction. "That is correct. The information we have received from Luce and Verde did not match your actions. They had said that after the curse was unsealed, the Arcobaleno had split up, ending the ties with the Vongola." Skull grunted. "It is half-true, that information. We did end all ties with the Vongola. The other part, you can figure it out." Cappuccino glared at them from the sidelines.

"I hope you aren't forgetting the fact that your Boss is with us." Skull tilted his head to the side for a while, trying to catch on. Mammon responded instead. "If you are talking about Luce, then she should have left your base already. Half of the Black Spell are the men of Giglio Nero – in case _you_ haven't forgotten. They have Gamma and Genkishi – escaping shouldn't be a quite the deal there." Glo Xinia gritted his teeth.

"Curse all of you. Curse all of you, scums. What are you doing? Byakuran-sama expects them!" Glo Xinia raised his hand and pointed at the group. The men surged forward, with Cappuccino and Gingerbread in the lead. Skull and Mammon kicked a few out of their way, as Mammon summoned some of her most effective illusions. Of course, the first generation wasn't going to just stand around, either. They supported the back – and protected the kids to the best of their abilities.

That was, of course, until a burst of sun flames covered their range of sight. A horrified scream followed, and the adults were pulled away to the side in shock. It was Ryohei. He had Chrome in his arms, who was staring at him with a rather mortified expression – as if she had no idea what was going on. "Ryohei? What are you-" "I'm sorry." The boy said with a smile – a sincere smile. Then he disappeared into the crowd of men, as Gingerbread smirked.

"Everything is moving as planned." Skull and Mammon glanced at eachother, looking troubled. They had not been expecting any of this to happen. The attack of the Millefiore was somehow fitting and in their calculations, but the betrayal of another kid wasn't what they had in mind. "We need to get out of here." Mammon quickly said, as she waved her hand in the air and created another illusion as a barricade. Knuckle and Daemon looked desperate. "But Chrome/Ryohei is-" "Look. We didn't expect this to happen as well. However, we all need to get out here. Or do you all want to get caught? We're trapped. Can't you tell?"

The adults exchanged awkward glances, trying to communicate eachother without words. They came upon a rather difficulty debated result, as they all started running. The men followed right behind them, as Hayato threw a handful of his dynamites – which of course, was suicidal, seeing how they were in a small, locked-in space. The ceiling came falling on all of them, and they heard a bunch of pained screams and yelps from behind, as they continued to run, not even bothering to check what was happening. When they finally exited the base, they had to keep on running, as there were still men following their tracks.

"Mammon, did Verde contact Fon yet?" "Who knows? Verde might've forgotten, though that idea is very unlikely to happen." She paused, as she glanced behind them, and then stopped. "I think they're gone now." "Precisely to say, we can't see them anymore. They're somewhere over there." "Yes, very true. Where is Reborn? Tell him we have quite an emergency spurring around-"

"I'm right here." Reborn responded. He was leaning on a wall right in front of them, the other Arcobalenos in the same alley. "Let's go talk somewhere else… somewhere they won't notice that we're present." They walked deeper in, and then finally stopped when they couldn't see where they had entered. "So, what emergency do we have? Though I can kind of already tell that we're missing a few children." Colonello nodded in agreement with the sun arcobaleno. "It was Ryohei." "What about him?" "He betrayed us. More like, he was a spy, I should say." Reborn remained silent for a while. It was not long before he spoke again.

"Well, I was expecting it." The other Arcobalenos frowned, as if this was now, unheard of. "How so?" Asari questioned, a little worn out. "His past and such. I do not know the details though. I was in charge of Tsuna, in case you weren't aware." Reborn shrugged, as the Arcobalenos sighed. The adults raised their eyebrows and frowned in confusion. "'In charge of', you say? I do not think we are on the same page, over here." Daemon said – still quite devastated from what had happened. The kids weren't speaking at all, in fact – they were all too exhausted to say a single word.

"We surely aren't." Lal Mirch nodded supportively. "But, we can explain." She sighed heavily, as she pulled out a cigarette from her pocket. Then she glanced at G and offered him one. "What's that?" He asked, and Lal Mirch demonstrated the process as she lighted her own. G immediately understood and took one in his hand, borrowing the lighter from Lal Mirch. Of course, there was modern version of pipes. It tasted kind of weird and different, but it worked. "So, the explanation?" Knuckle asked, and Lal Mirch nodded. "Yes, the explanation. We're getting to that."

"So, to start of with, we told you we had cut off our ties with Vongola, yes? Well, you see – then that obviously means we were all a part of the Vongola. Us, the Arcobaleno, were members of the CEDEF – yes, that group your fellow cloud guardian, Alaude had created. After Sawada Iemitsu passed away in an unfortunate accident – very unfortunate, indeed. He was murdered – by who, it is unknown. But he was found dead in his office – and of course, the organization of CEDEF needed to elect a new boss. As a result, Luce was chosen specifically. This was a very odd occasion, because at that time, Luce was also the boss of the Giglio Nero. Well, even so – she managed to make both groups function well. Because of this, the Giglio Nero and Vongola became closer in terms, which exceeded our expectations, because we were thinking they would cause a rebellion of sorts, of having to 'share' their boss. But anyways.

"Here is where the real story starts. About a year after Luce became the boss of CEDEF, Byakuran, the current boss of the Millefiore, fled the Famiglia with half of Vongola's men. Nono, of course, was very shocked. Byakuran, being very young, you see – started the Millefiore of course. His power and influence on the Japanese society was unbelievable. Vongola's allied Famiglias darted away, and eventually, us, the Arcobaleno left his side, and the CEDEF was… disbanded." The adults seemed to be very surprised at this. It was G who started the questions.

"Why did you leave the Vongola, in the first place? Weren't your loyalties devoted to Nono?" Colonello nodded at this, deciding to continue. "They were, obviously. We served him for a long period of time. However, it was evident that the Vongola was falling apart – literally. The Varia, the private assassination group had publically announced that yes, they might still be a part of the Vongola, but they weren't going to support the Famiglia in any way possible. The majority of the CEDEF members left, until eventually there were less than twenty members remaining. As a result, the organization was disbanded, and us, the Arcobaleno had left as well – for the better, really."

Reborn cleared his throat. "Going on, we discussed amongst eachother about our future plans. We had received some information through Fon – who acts as our advisor and information collector along with Verde – that the Vongola was thinking about electing a new boss – Vongola Decimo, who now, I will reveal – was to be Tsunayoshi. Undoubtedly, this was the wrong choice to make. We fully understood the worries of Vongola Nono – he was too old to defend Vongola from the Millefiore forces any further, and so were his guardians. The only hope, was the next following generation – the direct descendants of Vongola Primo and his guardians.

"However, this did not end well. Byakuran, apparently, had received the identical piece of information as well. He tracked down all the children, and made their lives miserable." The kids jerked up. Hayato scowled. "I think _we_ need an explanation, now." "It's coming, it's coming." Reborn sighed. "Byakuran made their lives miserable. Continuing on – we, the Arcobaleno, have came upon a decision (that was thoroughly discussed) that we somehow needed to save this kids. Not literally, but we needed to help them, in a sense. So we decided which kids we would be in charge. I chose Tsuna, and the others took ones they were comfortable with. Actually, all of them chose a kid that possessed the same flame as them, except me and Luce."

"Yes, yes, because you two were such a nice couple that wanted to stand out." Verde rolled his eyes, as Reborn threw a meaningful glare. "Joking, of course." He added, as if to make a point. Mukuro cleared his throat. "To simply put it, you were _stalking _us." He raised his right brow, and Mammon shrugged. "I wouldn't say that. We were looking over you. Most of us were very secretive about it. We made sure none of you would notice. Well, with the exception of Colonello." The rain Arcobaleno jumped, and then grunted. "Well, it was an emergency." Takeshi looked up at the Arcobaleno. He could still remember that time, when the man saved him from the Millefiore forces – he was truly grateful then.

"Is there more to the story?" Asari asked curiously, and Skull shrugged. "I would say… no. Obviously we couldn't take care of the kids ourselves – because we couldn't get risk the possibility of Byakuran getting hold of our identity. This is because at that time, Luce pretended, with Verde, to join the Millefiore themselves – and then we told them that the Arcobaleno had parted, and were going separate ways. The reason Verde joined was because Spanner was there, but well." Spanner, who had been bluntly quiet throughout the whole session perked up in a startled manner, and then frowned – but didn't say anything, nonetheless.

"Now that I think of it, Spanner – how did you not manage to get yourself killed? I thought the Millefiore forces were planning for the assassination of the whole Bovino Famiglia, as well." Knuckle questioned in a polite manner, and the blonde, as much as he wanted to rest his mouth in peace, responded. "A deal. I made a deal with Byakuran." Lampo, who was also silent throughout the whole session, spoke. "What deal is that, now?" Spanner wordlessly opened a new lollipop and started sucking. "Thanks to Gokudera, then, I was able to make Lambo escape. However, the Millefiore forces caught up… and it didn't go well. I was taken of course – it was amusing that they didn't kill me on the spot, which obviously meant that they had something up their wicked sleeves."

"And?" "Byakuran asked me. He said that he wouldn't kill me, if I came into his Famiglia. I gave him a look of course, and it wasn't a good one. I said no. And then I thought again – and decided to make this an advantage to me. I told him, that we should make a deal. He questioned me, as if he was interested. I said that… well, I would work for him – in return, he would never even dream of hurting Lambo. He accepted. Though now that he is kidnapped, the deal is broken." The blonde shrugged, as Lampo sighed lightly.

"However, this whole explanation you have provided to us so far – it does not give further assistance to the reason Ryohei betrayed us – or became a spy. Both of them work." Knuckle frowned. He was more than just eager to hear the truth about his descendant. Impatience wasn't his personality – it was G's, but this time he had no other option. He was concerned.

"That, is something we cannot fully lead you through." A new voice entered the scene. They turned towards where the feminine voice was coming from, and found a girl – a pretty one too – with very short green hair, and a flowing white dress – with black cloak. She had a small birthmark under her left eye, and a wide smile.

"My name is Luce, the Sky Arcobaleno. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

**End of Chapter.**

**Firstly, I am very sorry for the long wait. It's finally Spring Break, and my health is restored. I am very thankful for all your moral support, and your patience – I appreciate all of it as whole. **

**But anyways, in this chapter there are 3 main events, excluding the arrival of Luce – first would be the explanations in the meeting, the second would be the betrayal of Ryohei, and the third would be the second part of the explanations. For those who couldn't understand, it is very simple – all the Arcobalenos were somehow a part of CEDEF, but after the betrayal of Byakuran, the said organization was disbanded. After that, the Arcobaleno looks over the kids – which explains how Colonello was able to save Takeshi from the Millefiore forces. **

**From here on, most of the pasts would be revealed. The ones that we know already are Mukuro, Chrome, and Hayato – Takeshi is an exception because his past isn't really over – because there is still the story with him and Tsuna. Tsuna's would be revealed last, not spoiling too much, of course – along with Byakuran's, in which I am trying drop some hints about his here and there. If you are a reader skilled at insight, you might have some suspicions about this chapter as well.**

**Well then, I will move on to my replies to all of your wonderful reviews, for Chapter 9. (Not my Author's Note one, though I will continue to present my thanks to all of your for that.)**

**No one – it is very much true that I am indeed focusing on Gokudera and Hibari. I will eventually make Gokudera step out of the spotlight, but Hibari plays quite an important role from here on as well. The other children will slowly have their time – and I am not entirely done with Yamamoto either. Your encouragement is appreciated.**

**Zairaswift – Well, thank you – I tried to make the entrance of the Arcobalenos as epic as possible. About Byakuran's parallel self, I am afraid he wouldn't appear until way later on in the story. Thanks for the enthusiasm though.**

**Natsu Yuuki – the update was delayed, but now here it is. Thank you for your moral support.**

**Mskoa – Love and Lust is continuously being worked on, and finally the next chapter will be its final part. Thank you.**

**Sky Lime – I am grateful that you are enjoying my story. Here is the update.**

**My thanks goes to:**

**Nindy .Aneesha**

**Icera**

**Natsu Yuuki**

**Zairaswift**

**Joyce**

**For the reviews on the Author's Note.**

**Until my next update,**

**~Meiko~**


	13. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

_It was a happy family. Kind and caring parents, an adorable little sister, all living together in a small apartment like all the other families did. Nothing was indifferent about them compared to others – they were normal. The boy couldn't ask for more of his life – he was truly satisfied of what he possessed at the time. He had friends, his sister had friends – and they had a home to come back to. There were people who loved them, and they had people they loved. It would've been nicer if that happiness had continued forever._

_But it didn't. _

"_Onii-chan, I wonder if I will be able to stand up again." _

_His little sister had fainted one day, in the middle of a Physical Education class. Her breathing went uneven, and she couldn't walk, run, or in that case do anything. Her whole body was suddenly paralyzed, and she couldn't do anything. The cause apparently was that she had fallen from a playground slide that was up high, accidentally pushed by a male classmate while they were in line. They thought it was going to end by a simple bump or so – but that wasn't the case. She couldn't move anymore. _

"_Of course you will be able to." The boy forced a cheerful grin on his tanned face. "It's a simple phase you're going through. This will end, and when you get better, we're going to go see the giant Christmas tree at the mall. We weren't able to see it last year, remember? We will go there together, with mom and dad…" He trailed off, as his sister held his hand and drifted off to sleep. _

"_What do you mean, she won't survive?" His mom, Sasagawa Natsuko trembled, as the doctor fixed his glasses back into their designated position._

"_I mean exactly what I mean, Ma'am. Your daughter doesn't have much to live, anymore. Her condition is getting worse to the point that is incurable, even with continuous treatment or surgery. Most of our profession surgeons have given up, and told me that at the most, she would have three months to live. We are trying our best, but really-" His dad stood up at hollered._

"_You people are doctors!" He cried, and the doctor sighed, as if he faced this situation several times. "There is nothing we can currently do, sir." He replied, in quite a professional manner. "Kyoko… my poor Kyoko…" His mom sobbed, as the doctor exited the office. Touhei, his father, embraced his mother as they sobbed together. Ryohei walked out silently, and headed to his sister's room. She was talking to the friendly nurse – though Ryohei didn't know her name. He stared as his sister laughed happily._

"_Ne, ne, onii-chan! The leaves are turning red! See, see? Aren't they pretty?" His sister squealed as she pointed at the trees beneath them outside. Ryohei laughed and patted her head. "They're pretty, but not any more than you." Kyoko blushed, as she spoke dreamily. "I hurry up and want to see the Christmas tree… it would be all shiny, don't you think?" His sister was scheduled to die around the end of December. She might be able to make it. He smiled, as he clutched her hand. "I think so too."_

_December 23__rd__. A day before Christmas – a day before the Christmas tree was going to shine, his sister had died. It was just one more day. One more day, and would've fulfilled her dream. Apparently, the heavens just seemed to be too cruel. His mom and dad didn't talk at all, as they saw Kyoko die peacefully, lying down on her bed with a smile – as if she had no regrets left. _

"_Onii-chan is always the best!"_

_Kyoko…_

Ryohei sighed, as he walked down the corridor of the Melone Base. He had passed Chrome over to Iris. Soon, she would go back to where she belonged – originally with her brother – Mukuro – in the Estraneo Laboratory. "Ryohei-kun." A voice called him from behind, and the boy turned around sub-consciously. It was Irie. "I heard you completed your mission." The boy nodded, and Irie Shoichi smiled. "Wonderful job. I am guessing you noticed along the way that Kyoya-kun was performing the same mission as you?" He nodded again, as Irie patted his back. "That's good. Spanner seems to have betrayed the Famiglia you see… so now I need to do everything by myself. Tiring job, it really is." He stood up again, and stretched. "Well, then see you later, Ryohei-kun." The waved, as the man disappeared from sight.

He started walking too. Really, he was free now. Not from the invisible restraints, but from the missions – he was free. "Well, what should I do to the extreme…" He sighed and walked around the base. It wasn't like there was a facility he could excite himself with – the only childish excitement he could feel was the training he enjoyed to do personally, when he had nothing to do. The other kids that worked for the Millefiore were all the same. All they could do everyday, was be thankful that there weren't like half the other kids in the base that were being used as specimens by the Estraneo.

"Boring, isn't it?" A rather deep, feminine voice was heard from behind as Ryohei jumped, while he was training himself in his own room. The door was open, and there, remained a woman with long, light pink hair. "You're…" Ryohei started. "Bianchi, the Poison Scorpion." The woman smiled, as she lighted a cigarette. "That is right. A cover for Spanner Bovino, I should say." She sat down on his bed. "I was ordered to keep an eye on you." Ryohei frowned. "Byakuran-sama has…" He trailed away. "Well that's fine with me." He finally said, as Bianchi nodded.

He continued punching the sandbag in front of him thoughtlessly, as Bianchi folded her arm and watched. When she spoke, Ryohei was forced to stop to find the hidden meaning behind her words. "You're a small bird too, I suppose." She said, as the boy blinked. "What do you want to imply?" She simply shrugged. "A kind of… well, I just twisted my philosophy and how I view this world." Ryohei decided to listen, as he twisted open the bottle of water. "You're not at the way bottom of the pyramid – but you always have a predator that looks upon you. The society has become less… honest and blunt, so they try their best to hide it. Small birds like you are on top of the small hopeless ants in the Estraneo Lab, but there's always that Lion towering above you." Bianchi pointed upward towards the sky. "Namely Byakuran."

"… Why are you telling me this?" Ryohei questioned, as he eyed the pink haired female curiously – but suspiciously, at the same time. She blew a puff of smoke from her mouth, and then closed her eyes, as if she was trying to remember a memory from long ago – not forgotten, just vague. "I was unable to protect someone. Because of that, I lost that person – forever." She opened her eyes again. "That's why I came to the Millefiore – to find him again." She mumbled, and then stood up. Ryohei frowned. "Weren't you ordered to look over me?" "For a while, yes. I think I will be going now." She walked towards the door, and then closed it, and then looked up at the ceiling as she leaned on the cold surface. She sighed and remained in that position for a long time, and then slowly took a step and trotted away.

Ryohei sniffed the air, the smell of Bianchi's cigarette still left in the small room. He opened the door a little, leaving a gap – and then flopped down on his bed. He reached for the small picture that was placed neatly inside a wooden frame, and caressed it with much care. He put his thumb over the face of his smiling sister, and then gazed at his parents that were standing behind the two delighted siblings. _Mom…_

_About 4 months after Kyoko died, the family had settled down. Not completely, but Ryohei couldn't hear the constant weeping downstairs by his mother everyday, and he couldn't see his father staring at an old album, staring at them with a blank expression, flipping the pages over and over until he reached the end. When he did, he always mumbled a muffled apology to no one present – as he ran his wrinkled fingers through his grey hair. The man looked so pained, that when Ryohei had first spotted his father doing so, he gripped the wooden door tightly, and walked away the next second._

_It was almost as if nobody was paying attention to him anymore. Not like Ryohei could complain – he was pretty much ignoring his parents during the day. His mother wouldn't welcome him back from coming from school, and his father wouldn't embrace him at the doorstep when he came back from a training session for his upcoming boxing matches. It's not like Ryohei even went to greet him now – they were just all so isolated from one another, as if they were strangers. _

_That day was the same. Nothing was different – Ryohei came back from school as usual, visiting his sister's grave on the way of course – as he silently opened the door. What he found was his mother trembling on the floor, her phone far off on the side of the living room, slightly cracked. Her mascara was all smudged across her face, as she cried aloud, not even noticing that Ryohei had come back. The boy was curious – but afraid. It was obvious that something had happened. "Mom…?" He called out, as he dropped his bag off to the side. His mother glanced at him, literally crawled up to the boy, and hugged him and cried even harder._

"_Why… why…" She whispered, her tears saturating the thin cloth of Ryohei's shirt. "Touhei… Touhei…" She mumbled again, and that's when Ryohei started to catch on. He pulled his mother away, and then grasped her shoulder with both of his hands and asked abruptly. "What happened? Dad? What happened to him? Mom, what happened to dad?" His mom didn't respond. Maybe it was that she couldn't respond – really, he did not know._

_When his mom had calmed down enough to form proper sentences, she had told him what she heard on the phone barely an hour ago. His father had died. Very suddenly, if he had to add. He was in a middle of a boxing match – and apparently the opponent was too strong. So strong, that the opponent had killed his father. It wasn't entirely his fault, of course. People died sometimes – though rarely – in sports games. A rare occurrence, but it happened. His father was just one of them. At least, that's how Ryohei wanted to believe. He had lost all hope. His family was falling apart. His mom and tried reaching his grandparents and relatives for help, but they weren't very lucky._

_Ryohei was forced to stop going to school. His family wasn't very rich, but he was always told by his father – that if he was truly a man, then he not only needed strength, but knowledge. That's why he went to school. Now, his family couldn't afford it. His mom worked on part-time jobs, but it was too challenging to pay for the apartment's rent and the school fees at the same time. Ryohei was sent to live with his aunt – who treated him fairly nicely for the first few weeks, and then sighed as she made up and excuse and sent him back home._

"_Home"._

_When he arrived at the address his aunt had given to him, his mom wasn't there. The boy asked around and soon figured out that his mom had left long ago with out a trace, not leaving anything behind. He later on tried to return to his aunt, but the door was shut closed in a firm manner. The boy was now homeless – and really, he was an orphan. He had lived in poverty for months and months – the scenes he would see on the new and TV was happening to him. He regretted thinking that the people looked dirty and filthy – he was no different from them, now._

_He possessed of nothing but a single photo that remained tattered on the edges, one piece of clothing that he was wearing at that moment, and then some coins that he could buy nothing with. Finally, the boy couldn't take it anymore. He cried aloud and blamed the heavens – for the punishment he was receiving._

"_What have I done wrong?" He yelled, surrounded by bits of rubbish and fleas. "You take away my beloved sister, and then my father, and then my mother. What have I done so wrong to go through all this?" He mumbled, covering his ears, in attempt to block all the painful memories from his head. The boy then tensed up as he heard the rustling of newspapers and the gush of wind – and the sound of a motorcycle stopping abruptly in front of him. He looked up, his eyes slightly wavering in fear, and the shadowy figure that stood quite tall above him._

"_Are you alright?" The voice was kind and caring. Ryohei frowned, and then took a closer look at the person. She had an orange flower birthmark under her eye, with short green hair. "Go away." He said in a rather hushed manner. "It's none of your business." He grumbled, as Luce kneeled down to his eye level. Ryohei scooted away cautiously, as Luce smiled wider than before. "You have a very handsome face, young man." His eyes were probably sunken, and his lips were also probably dry. And yet, Luce was calling him handsome. Ryohei had no idea what she could be thinking. Another voice appeared to be present._

"_Luce, I think we'll need to go soon – Reborn expects us by seven." The voice was light and sounded good-natured. Luce jumped as she stood up slowly, and then patted Ryohei's head. "I'm going, Fon." She called out, and then glanced at Ryohei again and spoke, "I'll come back again, darling. Stay here, alright?" Ryohei didn't reply as she walked away, and got on the motorcycle again. As she was completely out of sight, Ryohei grumbled. "It's not like anybody will come back, anyways." _

_But he waited, regardless._

Ryohei still remembered that day. Luce. It was a very scarce, pretty name. He liked the way the name rolled off his tongue all the time. He waited, and waited, because he had nowhere to head to anyways. It was the first time, since his sister's death, that anybody had said that they'll come back in such a promising attitude. Maybe it was just that Ryohei needed something to hang on desperately. He needed someone so bad, that he was being tricked by odd people and adults – just like how all adults would lie. But Luce was different. He could tell.

"_I'm back." He looked up again. There stood Luce, still wearing the same white gown. "So you really came back." He mumbled – though really, he was glad. He was relieved. He didn't know why, but he felt… remembered for, and cared for. "Did you think I wouldn't?" Luce chuckled, and Ryohei didn't respond. She smiled and sat down. The boy frowned. "It's dirty, you know." "You sit here everyday. If a kid like you can sit down on this, then I can too." Ryohei glanced up at her, and then frowned. "You're different, aren't you?" Luce smiled. "Maybe. Who knows?"_

_They talked for a while – Luce being the one asking the questions, and Ryohei being the one answering them. Of course, there were moments of silence that went past between the two – as the boy was hesitant to respond to the minority. In which Luce cared less – it was rather naïve, to think that the boy would open up instantly to a stranger. Day after day, she would come to him – sit down, and talk like that. Some topics were repeated – the unanswered ones. Sometimes Ryohei would reply, and sometimes he would remain silent, with his mouth shut. _

_That other day – it was a chilly day, too. Unusually chilly, if he had to say. Luce wasn't coming – she was late – or at least, that's what Ryohei thought. He easily mistook the shadowy figure walking towards him as Luce and stood up – but sat down again abruptly, noticing that something was off. Yes, something, was off. It was a man – not very old – still a teenager, if Ryohei had to say. His hair was a shade of striking white, and he had a line of purple spikes beneath his eye. He was wearing an indigo shirt and black pants, with a pair of earphones plugged into his ears. He was humming, and then stopped in front of Ryohei's small figure, and then smiled. "Hello," he said, as Ryohei backed away towards the wall._

"_My name is Byakuran."_

**BACK TO LUCE AND CO…**

"Luce, you're late. Awfully late." Reborn sighed, as the female threw him an apologetic glance. "I'm sorry. Byakuran was pretty hard to beat." Colonello rolled his eyes. "That bastard. He takes us easy, doesn't he?" "He doesn't even know of our current locations, and he thinks that he can overpower us so easily." Skull grumbled. "Very full of himself – but I have to admit, it would be rather challenging to beat him." Daemon frowned. "So, are you the boss of this group?"

Luce smiled. "If you prefer to call me that, then I am fine. I am simply a member of this fellow Arcobalenos – and I exist to help the kids – the scarred and needy." Yamamoto frowned. "You sound like as if you are saying that directly to us." Luce shook her head. "Well, if that's what it sounded like to you, then I apologize. I was talking about kids like you in general – maybe that's why you felt like that." She paused, and then glanced around. "You're missing a few friends, I see." She then turned to Verde and asked: "Where's Fon?" Verde glanced at the screen of his laptop. "I lost track of him. I did inform him that we left our base, but after that I can't relocate his pacifier. I think it's a malfunctioning in the system – I did bump this thing on the wall while running away."

"That laptop breaks that easily?" Skull grumbled. "If Fon gets lost, it'll be your fault." The green haired scientist glared meaningfully at the cloud Arcobaleno. "I can bet all my inventions that Fon won't get lost – he is not like you, after all. He was qualified to receive the storm pacifier because of his potential and ability after all. He will find his way to where we are, even if we fully lose connection." Verde reached his hand out to Lal Mirch, as she casually handed him a cigarette. "The real problem is the IB system. If they found out where our base was, that means that they knew our identity from the very start – or a little later. Then why haven't they killed me, Luce, and Spanner from the start?"

"The existence of the Black Spell, I assume." Colonello responded. "I think that when Luce first came in to make a deal with Byakuran, Byakuran didn't know that the Arcobaleno were still together. Which is probably why he accepted the deal. The presence of the Black Spell is great in the Millefiore Famiglia – as it takes up half of their defense and offense forces and troops. If Byakuran killed Luce and Verde, along with Spanner then, it would've created uproar between the two forces – White Spell and Black Spell. There are only a few of Byakuran's men in Black Spell after all – less than fifty, I would say. Most of them are subordinates of Luce – and they are very loyal to her. Killing Luce and Verde would've caused many of them to plan for assassination of the White Spell. It doesn't help that the Funeral Wraths that hold the Mare Rings – a few of them are a part of the Black Spell."

"That's quite a understatement." Mammon mumbled. "However, that's not what we should be worrying about. What we really need to be concerned with right now is Byakuran's next move. Out of the thirteen direct descendants, including Byakuran – four of them are in the Millefiore-" Gokudera suddenly stood and interrupted. "Four, you say." Mammon stared at him, and then nodded. "Yes, four." Gokudera narrowed his eyes. "As far as I know, there should only be twelve direct descendants. The eight of us, Byakuran, Spanner, Verde, and Fon. If there is a thirteenth one, it would be-" "Your sister, obviously." Mammon said, as Gokudera froze.

"My sister should've died in the massacre of the Scuro Famiglia. That's what I heard. I even looked it up-" Reborn cleared his throat. "Now that's where you will need to ask Fon. He's the only one that knows all about you. Even if you try to question us further from here, you can't get anything out of us. Besides, what we need now is not another conversation about your pasts. We need to prepare for a quick and efficient counterattack against the White Spell. Luce, what's the current condition of the Black Spell?" Luce took out a rectangular device from her pocket and stared at the small screen for a while.

"Gamma-kun is nearby. He's with his men, next to a hotel not so faraway from here. Since where we're at is basically the alley behind the train station… yes, he's just a few hundred meters away. I think Genkishi-kun is…" Luce opened her eyes. "At Saitama." Skull hummed as he twisted his earring. "The Vongola base… eh. Smart move." Mukuro scowled in confusion. "Why do you say so?" Skull shrugged, as he pulled out his own cigarette. "Fon-senpai is starting at Akita. The route he is taking – or probably was at least planning to take, was going straight to Saitama, Yoshikawa – and then moving to Sotto base, past Waseda. It would be quite convenient if he meets up with Genkishi at Saitama – because then there would be no need for us to do anything to lead him here."

"We should get going as well. We don't want to be discovered by the men of the White Spell again." Reborn yawned a little, as he stood up and cracked his knuckles. "Where are we going, Reborn… er, senpai?" Skull asked with much hesitation. "You should know that much, Skull. Or was your training not enough?" Reborn smirked, as Skull shivered. "O-of course not." Reborn tilted his fedora upward, and opened his mouth, taking a step forward.

"We're heading straight back to Melone Base. The real battle starts now."

**A FEW HOURS LATER…**

"Why am I in charge of all of you again?" Skull slapped his forehead, as they crawled on their knees. They were going through a small pathway, which was supposed to connect straight to the powerhouse of the Melone base. Gokudera grunted, as Mukuro grunted, and followed behind. "Besides, I'm the weakest among the whole Arcobaleno… seriously, Reborn-san or Colonello-san could've taken care of each of you, and it would've been perfect."

"You lost in the game of rock, papers, and scissors – that's why. Twice." Gokudera replied, as they continued to crawl. His legs were starting to ache, and it wasn't very comfortable – staying in the so-called 'dog' position for over an hour. Or at least, Gokudera thought it was over an hour. It smelled terrible – the stench of whatever was rotting in the path was getting worse and worse as time passed. Mukuro paused and sniffed, and crinkled his nose and coughed.

"Why the heck did you inhale- oh word." Gokudera felt his stomach twisting from the insides, as he gagged a little. Skull rolled his eyes, pulling his purple mask on. "Hold your breath, and if you have to breathe then just… bear with it." He mumbled, as he continued to crawl. "We're almost there. See?" Skull pointed at the light that was ahead of them – until it turned off. "Or not." He groaned, as they continued to crawl where the light was located – or used to be located.

When they reached the end, Skull pulled the covering off to the side. He grunted as the sharp edge grazed his palm, as he jumped off the edge. The room they were in was dark – pitch black, in fact. "The powerhouse of the Melone base… huh." Skull mumbled. _Something's odd, though… the powerhouse of the base, unguarded… very uncharacteristic of Byakuran, that is. Did something happen? Or… don't say-_ The male turned around as he threw a panicked expression at the kids who jumped from the edge as well. Before they could question him of anything, Skull kicked them to the side as he pushed them towards the wall, his back covering their sight.

"What do you think you are doing-" Gokudera growled, but Skull hushed them angrily. Mukuro frowned. Over the whole room there laid series of red beams of light that were pretty much invisible to the average human eye. _I see… a trap… as expected of the Millefiore – this security is pretty impressive… but it's not something we can't escape. _Skull smirked, as he loosened his grip on the kids. "Listen." He whispered. "Just follow me. Do not behave on your own, or else the trap will activate itself – and whatever happens, will happen. And in that case, I will try my best to protect all of you – but with the Millefiore forces, we can be killed almost instantly. You comprehend my words?" The kids nodded – though they both looked frustrated about the fact that they weren't allowed to move as freely as they wish.

Skull passed through the beams of red light, as Gokudera and Mukuro followed behind. _There should be the control machine here, according to the information Reborn-san gave to me… where…_ Skull spotted the rectangular material in the middle of the room, and slowly stood up – and then rushed towards it. _The passcode- _before Skull could even touch the keyboard and buttons, as the lights turned on instantly and the alarm went off.

Skull groaned. _Ok, my bad. _He turned around and saw the door being slammed open, and revealing a rather bulky looking man. The cloud Arcobaleno spat on the ground, as he smirked. "Well, _this_ is rare. One single officer. Are you that confident in your strength?" He questioned, as the man just huffed in a frustrated manner. "Well, I heard that the Cloud Arcobaleno was the weakest anyways. I would be enough to be your opponent, _Skull_." The male sneered, as Skull twitched. He absolutely abhorred the word 'weak' – especially when it was used against him. He chuckled dangerously, as he licked the tip of his thumb. "Oh, really." Mukuro raised his eyebrow at the change of aura.

"My name is Dendro Chilum. Good to remember, eh?" Dendro grumbled, holding up his box weapon. "Not really, I think." Skull responded, as he summoned purple dying will flames that instantly surrounded his whole body. Dendro scowled, as he inserted the ring into the box. The box glowed as green lightning flames exploded. "Lancia Ellectrica." The male mumbled, a large lance in his hand that was coated with lightning dying will flames. He charged forward, as Mukuro instinctively ran to the left, with Gokudera moving to the right. Skull grabbed the lance mid-air, as he gritted his teeth and was pushed back towards the wall.

"Armored body." Skull said aloud, as his body started to grow visibly in size. Dendro laughed, as if this was all a joke. He inserted his ring once again into his box weapon, and this time summoned his box animal – a wild lightning boar. "Elletro Cinghiale." He said a louder, as the boar growled a few times, and then ran straight towards the Cloud Arcobaleno. Skull blocked the attack, but barely – as he tried to defend himself, the sharp tusks of the animal grazing his side. Blood dropped onto the ground, as Skull narrowed his eyes.

"This is the end." Dendro chuckled in sadistic manner, as he got on the wild boar as it ran forward towards Skull, who was clutching the side of his stomach. Dendro held up his lance, and shouted. "Triplo Corno Lancia!" The lance was ready to launch, and the boar was ready to crush its enemy. However, the animal stopped abruptly when an explosion happened – it was a pair of dynamites.

"My, my, this is very troublesome. I am not even very used to this…" Mukuro struggled to keep his illusions under his control, as the vines held the boar in place. Dendro scowled as his attack was blocked by mere kids. He got ready to launch his lance once again – this time not aimed at Skull, but Gokudera. But before he could do so, Skull slammed his body into the muscular man, as he kicked the boar out of the way. "Undead Body." Skull murmured under his breath, as Dendro howled in pain as his back made contact with the wall. The Cloud Arcobaleno continued delivering powerful blows – mainly to the face of the male, as Dendro was knocked out – cold.

"We need to get out of here." Skull mumbled, as he pulled Gokudera and Mukuro towards his side. His side was still bleeding, but that could be taken care of in the near future. Gokudera glanced around them as he ran as fast as he could. He spotted the security camera and surveillance following them and watching their every move at every single corner, and frowned. He threw another pair of dynamites at the devices, and then continued to run. Mukuro finally dismissed his own illusions, as he waved them out of the way.

**MEANWHILE…**

The small boy coughed, as he rolled on the ground and moaned in pain. His body was getting hotter as time passed, and his eyes were starting to ache. His head felt as if it was being torn part into two pieces, and his breathing was ragged. He had given up sitting up properly since a few days ago – no, was it a few weeks? He couldn't remember. Lambo whimpered, as his vision blurred all over again. The only memories he contained of how he got here – was that at one moment, he was with Kyoya in a room – and at the next, he was standing in a small tank, as several men observed him carefully.

He was now in a small room. The last time the men visited him was three days ago. The area was dark – so dark, that he couldn't see anything. No, maybe it was just his eyes. He was becoming blind of sight, and he was in pain. The men had done something to him, obviously – he could tell. They were talking about a project when he was in the tank. Mukuro's name was said once, and Lambo pretended as if he was clueless and just fearful. At least that time he was acting it out – now, he was really fearful of every single thing.

He was fearful of death. He was scared that he would rot away in this hell, not being able to meet anyone in the end – not even his dearly Haya-nii. Lambo opened his mouth a little, as he remembered the distant memories of the Vongola mansion. No, it wasn't that long ago to call it distant – it just felt very long ago to him.

"_We can do it some time, I guess."_

_"Do what?" _

_"That so called Hide-and-Seek."_

Lambo could remember it. Lampo had said to him – that they would play hide and seek altogether, in the garden of the mansion, as a family, everyone…

The little boy sighed, as he rolled to the side, throwing his arm carelessly over his forehead. The words scientists said to him loomed around his head, almost like it was some kind of curse that couldn't leave him alone until he was gone from this very surface of Earth. Lambo hated it. He hated it all very much. He wished this was all a dream – but it wasn't.

"_He is perfect. The experiment failed on Mukuro, but this might really work out this time. I swear, I had never seen any body more suitable for this plan. This is the only chance we have. Before more of our men gets wiped out, we need to successfully finish this experiment on him."_

"_He is the one."_

Lambo opened his eyes with a blank expression, as he twitched.

_I'm… the one._

**End of Chapter.**

**Late update, because of the mass of projects that are piling up against my back at the end of the term. I worked on about a few hundred words or so every weekend, and this is what I got. Thanks for waiting patiently, guys.**

**So, I want to clear up some things in this chapter. Firstly, Ryohei's past. No, that is not the end of Ryohei's past, if that's what you guys were all wondering. In fact, none of the pasts of the kids are fully revealed, as you can see that Mukuro's is still being explained one by one, as I go into the details of Lambo's. If I were to give you a hint, the only thing I can say about Ryohei's past will be that it is connected to Yamamoto's past – in a quite unexpected way.**

**Secondly, the appearance of Bianchi. Though half-siblings with Gokudera, she is still considered a direct descendant, and will play a major role in this story later on – not now. **

**Lastly, the Lambo scene. I threw a great hint there, though it might've been barely visible. "The experiment failed on Mukuro…" this part is very important. If you are confused, then please reread the Mukuro chapter all over again. If you still don't' understand, then I will leave you with a question: "Is Mukuro's nightmares really only because of his imagination and awakening memories?" Because if this statement was true, then the nightmares should also be happening to Chrome. Hm… also, please remember the fact that the one that looked after Mukuro from the shadows was Mammon. This is all important for Mukuro's portion of the past.**

**Finally, the reviews of my beloved readers.**

**QuirkyKit – I hope the hints I explained above given you a slight idea of what might've happened to Mukuro, at least. Thanks!**

**Zairaswift – I am very thankful for your helpful and encouraging reviews every chapter that gives me the inspiration to update. Thank you!**

**Natsu Yuuki – Hm… Ryohei's past will be explained further, and why he became a spy in the first place. Thanks for the review.**

**Guest – Taking Chrome with him was Byakuran's orders, so he really had no choice. Thanks, though.**

**Hopefully I can update soon.**

**~Meiko~**


	14. Chapter 12

**Chapter 13**

"_Takeshi, let's go play!"_

As they rustled through the Melone base, Yamamoto sighed at the old, unforgotten memory. He subconsciously rubbed the back of his neck, as Reborn and Colonello looked back and frowned. "Yamamoto, you alright?" The boy looked up, startled, and then laughed lightly. "Yeah, just… yeah, I'm fine." The two adults glanced at one another, mystified by Yamamoto's reaction. "Well, be careful, since this Melone base is famous for being able to shift and move itself, based on the controls of Irie Shoichi." "Now that I think of it, that guy…" Yamamoto's concentration trailed off as he sighed.

"_Class, today we will be going to the playground – be careful not to push eachother around too much…"_

"_Takeshi, it's my turn soon…"_

"_TAKESHI!"_

"_KYOKO!"_

He involuntarily gasped, inhaling the dusty metallic air in the atmosphere of the base. The boy was stopped by the swift hand blocking his way, which happened to be Colonello. Yamamoto snapped back into reality that very second, and habitually stuck his back to the nearest wall. Reborn was doing the very same thing, carefully peeking behind to see the situation behind them. Colonello was crouching on the floor, his left hand on his shotgun, and his right hand grasping Yamamoto's wrist.

"It's Ginger Bread." Reborn whispered to both of them, even though Yamamoto didn't know who that was supposed to be. Colonello spat on the floor. "The most irritating enemy to deal with… how did Byakuran even manage to make that guy one of his subordinates?" He grumbled under his breath, and then looked up to meet his eyes with Reborn. "Is he alone, or with his men?" "He's with about ten more men… they'll be easy to beat. The problem is-"

The sun Arcobaleno was cut off by the low rumble heard beneath them. Yamamoto yelped as the floor started splitting into equal squares, moving in separate directions. Colonello pulled him towards the cube he was standing on, which was moving downward. "Reborn, I'll leave Ginger Bread to you!" Reborn didn't respond and disappeared from sight.

As they continued to move elsewhere, Yamamoto looked up, holding onto Colonello's jeans. "Are you sure you didn't need to support him in the fight?" The blonde shrugged. "Reborn is strong. If me, him, and this other guy named Fon fought against one another, the one with the highest percentage of victory would be him." The younger one's eyes widened in surprise. "He's that strong?" Colonello was silent for a while.

"During the times when Vongola was actually the most powerful Famiglia on Earth, us, the Arcobaleno were known for being the strongest babies elected around the whole world. We were babies then, but now the curse is broken thanks to Luce… anyways, at that time, Reborn was called Hitman Reborn, the Strongest Man of the 21st century. That kind of explains his strength alone, independently." _More than that, my worries lay on the next enemy we are about to encounter… hopefully it isn't someone as irritating as Ginger Bread._

Meanwhile, as the cube started descending slowly, Yamamoto let go of Yamamoto's jeans, and lowered his body, resuming to his expression showing deep thought.

"_Everyone, today I am here to pass on a very depressing message. Our beloved classmate, Sasagawa Kyoko-san has passed away." The whole class was dead silent. None of them, being the age level they were, didn't understand the true meaning of to have someone pass away – the definition of death itself. Yamamoto sat in his seat with a blank expression, staring at the empty desk next to him. He felt as if he was alone in the whole room along with that wooden desk his previous partner – previous _dead_ partner, if he had to add._

"_I killed her." He thought in much fear. "I killed Kyoko. If only that time, I wasn't standing next to her… if only I could withstand the pushing…"_

"_Kyoko is dead, Takeshi."_

"_Darling, Takeshi isn't coming out of his room after that…"_

"_Leave him alone, Aoko. He'll recover someday."_

_You killed her, Yamamoto Takeshi._

"_No, I didn't…"_

**MEANWHILE…**

"Byakuran-sama, it's Iris Hepburn reporting."

The white haired teen popped some marshmallows into his mouth, and responded in a muffled voice. "Speak up, Iris." "Yes sir." Iris cleared her throat and spoke a little louder. "Dendro Chillum has been defeated by the Cloud Arcobaleno, Skull, who had brought in two kids with the blood of Vongola – according to what has been saved in our cameras, would be specimen 69 Rokudo Mukuro, and Yamamoto Takeshi."

"Hm… and?" Iris looked back down as she flipped a few more pages. "Irie started to make his move with his box weapons. As a result, several troops of ours were separated as well. Ginger Bread is currently fighting with Reborn, the sun Arcobaleno in Area 28, and the rest of the groups are yet to be known. End of report, Byakuran-sama." The latter hummed, as he tapped the edge of his lip. "Send reinforcements to the officers that are fighting. Do not allow a single ant to enter this base… it'll be annoying if the boss of that lot actually enters."

Iris frowned. "If you're talking about Luce, she's already-" "No not her. The boss of the first generation Vongola Famiglia… Sawada Ieyasu Giotto. If that person decides to interfere… wait, Iris, who else is in the base right now, among them?" The female looked down and scanned the papers on her clipboard. "G, Daemon Spade, Asari Ugetsu, Knuckle, and Lampo Bovino, sir." "Hm… more the reason to increase the main forces of defense." Iris tilted her head to the side. "May I ask why, Byakuran-sama?"

"Because, the ones left from the Famiglia itself should be this woman, who isn't exactly strong… but anyways, there's that Sawada Ieyasu Giotto left, and furthermore, the man known as the most powerful Mafioso in history, Alaude is still out there… now that is a nightmare you don't want to experience, I swear." Byakuran chuckled. "Well, even if he comes in, I should be able to win him easily enough…"

"Of course, sir." Iris replied. "But Byakuran-sama, if you are the son of Timoteo-" "Iris." Byakuran raised his eyebrows as his pale eyes turned into a dangerous shade of grey. The female officer's shoulders rose in fear. "M-my apologies sir, I swear I didn't mean any bad-" Byakuran smiled. "I bet you didn't. But that's not really the point of me calling your name. I just wanted to make sure to… ah, spread the information."

Iris tilted her head to the side, trying her best not get on the man's nerves again. "What information, if I may ask, Byakuran-sama?" Byakuran stared out his window, into the tall buildings surrounding his base. He rubbed his chin with the side of his index finger, and closed his eyes, as if in deep thought. When he opened them again, on his expressionless face was a light smile.

"I'm not Vongola Nono's son, Iris." The woman with her afro frowned. "Of course you aren't sir, you are now the boss of this Millefiore-" "No, no, I didn't mean it that way…"

"I mean, I'm literally not Vongola Nono's blood related son."

Silence engulfed the room, as Iris' eyes widened. "Byakuran-sama-" "Iris, isn't it about time you go take care of your troops? Area 28 seems crowded… ah, Gingerbread is defeated, I see. How unfortunate." The female standing behind him dropped her clipboard and rushed to the screen attached to Byakuran's desk. While other screens looked normal, one screen showed a doll that looked like Gingerbread, torn into pieces. "Ginger… defeated? Impossible. Who-"

"Iris." Byakuran smiled. "I order you as the boss of the Millefiore Famiglia, to go back to work. Now." Iris Hepburn looked rather hesitant, but she turned away, obeying her superior. The door closed behind Byakuran, as he picked up his phone, clicking a button. Someone picked up on the other side almost immediately.

"_Byakuran-sama."_

"Ah, Sho-chan! It's me – how's it going over there?"

"_It's not what you can call a major emergency sir, but Vongola is sure making bold movements. As you might've seen, Area 45, nearing our 7__th__ secret entrance has been invaded by Skull, the cloud Arcobaleno, who has beaten Dendro Chillum quite mercilessly. They are currently making their way through – and it seems like they defeated Cappuccino in Area 40 as well, approximately three minutes ago. _

"_Colonello, the rain Arcobaleno is entering Area 21, and just started fighting with Baishana – which I am expecting a rather one-sided battle, as Baishana isn't very powerful as a lone officer. I do see Verde, the lightning Arcobaleno swarming through the Laboratory of the Estraneo, along with Mammon the mist Arcobaleno and two more individuals. Area 28, Reborn the sun Arcobaleno has defeated officer Gingerbread, Luce, Knuckle, Lampo, and Lal Mirch are all separated."_

Byakuran internally sighed at the long explanation he was required to process. "Let's make this sound a little easier, Sho-chan. So, who are the remaining officers left from our side, Funeral Wraths and normal workers?"

"_Including me, there is Rasiel, Glo Xinia, Gamma, Iris, and Genkishi sir. Gingerbread, Dendro Chillum, Cappuccino, oh, and Baishana was defeated by Colonello just now."_

"That's not a lot, is it? And compared to the Vongola they are considered pretty weak… maybe except Genkishi, I suppose. Of course, you're pretty strong too, Sho-chan. It's a disappointment that Spanner betrayed us. His inventions would help very much right now." Byakuran paused, and suddenly stood up. "Sho-chan… where is Spanner right now?"

"_Spanner, Byakuran-sama? Please wait a minute sir… uh… he's in Area 3… Entrance 4, Byakuran-sama… that's weird… there should be troops guarding that area as well… Spanner can't be that strong to defeat all those-" _Irie stopped, making Byakuran frown. _"I think… this is quite an emergency, Byakuran-sama." _ The white haired male could feel the base shake, and realized that the base was shifting again. His own office was moving upward as well, as Byakuran furrowed his eyebrows.

"_Outside, guarded by Officer Rasiel, Iris, and Glo Xinia… has been invaded." _

"By who, now." It wasn't a question – rather, a statement.

"_They're all here sir. Giotto, Alaude, a woman not in the records, Fon, the storm Arcobaleno, Sawada Tsunayoshi, and furthermore…" _

"_It's the Varia, sir."_

**IN THE ESTRANEO LABORATORY…**

"Was that all of them?" G grunted, holding up his gun. "I can't believe this place though. They are storing the bodies of kids in gigantic tubes of water… is this what Mukuro and Kyoya were talking about, when they were implying to the 'Lab'?" Verde shook his head, his crocodile crawling around his feet. "Precisely, this whole thing is the Lab. Those are called specimens – kids brought from the streets, or bought from slave centers. Well – slave center is an old thing too – it's basically similar to human trafficking."

Daemon put his scythe down and smirked. "I don't really know what that is, but it sounds pretty cruel. And I don't enjoy this idea of a Lab, either. I do like it when adults are being tortured in tubes, but not when children are." G rolled his eyes. Mammon was spacing about, as if she was looking for something. "Mammon, isn't it about time we go already?" Verde glanced at his clock. "The Varia should be arriving soon – and Xanxus said that he would explode this whole base in twenty minutes after their arrival."

"I know." Mammon's eyes busily scanned the vicinity. "But I need to find Chrome." The face of Lambo popped into Verde's head, as he clucked his tongue. "There is a high percentage of about ninety, _Viper, _that Chrome would've been taken away by Byakuran's men already." Mammon glared at the lightning Arcobaleno underneath her hood. "Then I will stick with the other low percentage of ten. And besides, their memory should be stored here as well."

Verde heaved a sigh, as he looked at his watch with a scowl. "If the Varia arrived now, which I'm assuming they did, including the time we have to escape this base, we have a total of twelve minutes we can spare here. Therefore, after twelve minutes, whether you have any objections or not, I am taking you out of here." Mammon didn't say anything, and Verde took that as a yes. G and Daemon glanced at one another, as if secretly trying to communicate something.

Out of sudden, Verde's pocket started buzzing – due to the vibrations of his phone. The scientist looked rather confused once he read the Caller ID, but picker up anyways. "Fon. What is it?" There was a pause. "Yes, we know that the Varia is here. I have predicted much-" Verde stopped talking. "… What now?" The said Arcobaleno sat down on the spot and took out his laptop. He rapidly started to tap on his keyboard with both hands, supporting the phone between his cheek and shoulder.

"Yeah… I'm trying. Yeah, yeah, I know… but Mammon's been making a fuss about how she needs to find Chrome and… Kyoya? I don't know, I am thinking he escaped already, seeing how the situation is going right now, but I can't be so sure. Lambo… no, I can't track him, unfortunately. Yeah. Meet you in twenty minutes." He hung up, and his phone dropped to ground, making a small crack on the edge.

"Who was that?" G frowned, as he went through bottles of rather questionable looking chemicals. "Ah, it was Fon. He was saying that they lost track of Tsuna… those useless bunch of barbarians. Vongola's Private Assassination Squad my serious shit. What are they telling me to do – to find the boy in ten minutes?" Daemon hummed. _Fon… the advisor guy, eh. _

"I found her." Mammon's voice echoed in the dark, as the three froze almost instantly. Verde was the first one to stand up and rush to her side. "… Along with someone rather unexpected." The mist Arcobaleno was staring at two shadowy figures that were still as unmoving rocks. One was Chrome, who lost her consciousness. The other was Kyoya, who looked battered, but was at least awake.

"Oh, look who it is." Verde grunted. "Someone who kidnapped my precious nephew, isn't it. He's not exactly precious, but regardless." Kyoya didn't say anything, but just held up his tonfas. "Calm down. It's not like we're going to do something harmful to you. If we do so, Fon will be quite frustrated, and it's not really nice when Fon is in his distasteful mood." The scientist fixed the position of his glasses and approached Chrome. He held her up in his own arms, and threw her carelessly towards Daemon. Daemon, startled at the certain move, dropped his scythe and caught her.

"Sometimes warnings are necessary, mind you." Daemon grumbled, picking up his weapon again. Verde didn't respond, as he stared down at Kyoya. "You. Would you rather die and rot here with the base, or will you rather be interrogated by a kind lady for about ten minutes and live?" The boy didn't really reply, but stood up nevertheless. "At least you're quite shrewd." Verde grunted, and turned around. He glanced at his wristwatch again.

"Exactly twelve minutes." Mumbling, he trudged forward as he packed his laptop and phone. "Let's go." G's eyes rounded a little. "Hey, didn't you say a while ago that Tsuna was-" "Yeah, yeah, he's lost in the base somewhere – but I doubt he'll die, even if he encounters Byakuran. How can I sound so definite, your expression seems to say. That's because, based on my database, Byakuran and Tsuna…" He trailed off, as he looked up to see dust falling from the ceiling.

"Actually, this can come later. Escaping is our top priority right now. The Varia never really says lies about their plans, after all." They ran out of the Estraneo Lab, following Verde and Mammon. Kyoya knew the way too, but he decided in didn't really matter in who led the way then. Daemon was taking peeks at how Chrome was doing – she was rather pale, and her body was covered in wounds. He was pretty sure she would need treatment from Knuckle, once they gathered together again.

They pushed past a few Millefiore men, with G shooting them down in one blast. Outside stood a group of the Vongola and Varia getting ready to crush the base down in a few minutes. "Hey." Mammon called, and was greeted by a strawberry blonde male. "Mammon… it's been a while. I was thinking we would have to kill you along with the people inside, because you weren't coming out, shishishi…" It was Belphegor, the storm guardian of the Varia. Mammon ignored him casually. "Hello, Xanxus." She nodded towards a scarred man who was looking quite impatient. In Daemon's opinion, he looked quite broad and brash – and pretty charismatic, as well.

"Trash." Xanxus acknowledged the Arcobaleno's presence. G spotted Giotto, and brushed past the crowd without a single second of hesitation. Giotto looked rather demoralized, staring at the Millefiore base nervously, drumming his fingers against his legs. And Giotto only did that when he felt really anxious. "Gio." G called the blonde with his shortened nickname – how he used to call them before they created the Vongola.

"G? Great, never knew you got out safely…" The volume of his voice turned down a notch every single time he said another word. "What's wrong?" "Tsuna's not coming out." "Then go find him." "My Hyper Intuition is telling me that he'll arrive before the explosion, but there are times where I have to be dubious about certain topics. And also question the limits of my Hyper Intuition, if I have to say. I am getting old, and I can't exactly assure its accuracy-"

"Giotto. Firstly, we are 22. That's not very old. Secondly, your Hyper Intuition was never wrong so far. I consider it very unlikely that it'll malfunction at this moment, so suddenly. Lastly, Tsuna has your blood in his vessels. He'll make it out. You're good at running away." Giotto stared at G's eyes that were filled with certainty, and finally reminded himself of the reason he had elected G as his right hand man – not only because he could trust him the most – but because G trusted his abilities more than he did himself. It was rather reassuring.

"… I understand." Giotto inhaled a deep breath of the moist air.

_4 minutes left till the Melone Base explosion._

**MEANWHILE…**

"_Byakuran-sama, we have evacuated the remaining troops. All 50 Areas are clear – we have 982 wounded officers, 102 dead officers, and around 2000 men alive without any major injuries. For A class workers, there is Irie Shoichi, Gamma, and Genkishi alive – but it seems like Gamma and Genkishi made their way out of the base – presumably an unnoticed betrayal. We couldn't locate any dead Vongola men, but we have safely transported the body of Lambo Bovino and Sasagawa Ryohei. I am pretty sure Hibari Kyoya and specimen 96, Chrome "Nagi" Dokuro has escaped."_

"I see – thanks for the report, Kikyo." Byakuran smiled.

"_No big deal, Byakuran-sama. However, what are you going to do with Irie Shoichi?"_

"It's not my business, really. Sho-chan is nice, but he is no use for battle. His inventions are exceptional, though. May I ask where he is right now?"

"_Right away, Byakuran-sama. Hm… it seems like he is taking care of three troops in Area B of our emergency base. Would you mind if I tell Bluebell or Torikabuto to take care of him?" _

"No, I wouldn't mind. Thank you for your support, Kikyo. Tell Bluebell I said hi." The man on the other line – Kikyo chuckled, and hung up. Byakuran stood up, and stared down at the group of people – the Varia and the Vongola, he could see – standing in front of the Melone base. Byakuran supposed it was plan thought through quite long ago – as it was obvious that the bombs or explosion material was planted beforehand.

"Maybe I underestimated them too much… no, was it a miscalculation of their strength? Who ever knew that Varia would come for support? In a pinch, the Vongola is always one… huh." He turned around and exited his office, his hands in his pockets. He walked down the emptied corridors, expressionless.

Until he heard a small whimper from the side.

Byakuran blinked. He never knew Kikyo could leave someone behind – for him to make such a mistake was quite rare. His inquisitive mind perking up in excitement, Byakuran looked sideways – and was actually quite amazed at the sight that unfolded in front of him. Tsuna was weeping very silently, covering his head. He was calling for someone – Byakuran was pretty sure it was something like "Yamamoto", but he couldn't be so sure. He approached the curled brunette, and kneeled down.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi." He spoke up, as Tsuna shrieked, sticking his back to the cold metal wall instinctively. "W-who are you?" Byakuran smiled and sat down in front of the boy. "My name is Tsukiyoshi." Tsuna hiccupped and tilted his head to the side. "Tsuki- yoshi?" "That's right. The shortened version of it is 'Tsuki'. It means moon." The brunette in front of him managed to grin as well. "T-that's a pretty name."

Byakuran realized that the base was starting to shake. Tsuna looked fearful, but the white haired male held him and put him on his shoulder. "We need to get out of here." He mumbled. Seen by the average human eye, Byakuran must've looked like he was there – and not there the next glance, as he moved so fast. In a span lesser than ten seconds, Byakuran was out of the base, still carrying Tsuna. The little boy looked amazed. "H-how-"

Before Tsuna could finish talking, a loud explosion occurred behind them. A gush of hot wind hit their bodies, as balls of fire erupted, resulting the scent of burnt metal travel through the air in a fast motion. Ash surrounded them, as Tsuna coughed a little. Byakuran glanced back at his base and shrugged, walking away from it. As soon as he put Tsuna down – we heard voices – just like he expected.

"Tsu-kun!" Elena cried, as she embraced Tsuna tightly. She rubbed her face against his, and wept. "I thought you- oh god, Daemon, he's alive…" The male illusionist patted her back, as Giotto wiped the cold sweat on his forehead away. The Varia was gone – it seemed like they had decided to vanish after they completed their job. Byakuran just stared at the scenery, his eyes nostalgic as he just clenched and unclenched his hands.

"Byakuran?" Luce called his name, and Byakuran stopped in his tracks, just about to walk away. "Did you… save Tsunayoshi-kun?" He rubbed the back of his neck and faced the sky Arcobaleno. "What if I did?" He grinned in a quite mysterious manner, causing Reborn and Colonello to subconsciously land their fingers on their weapons. However, Luce sent them a look – as if communicating a signal to stop. The two males lowered their own respective guns, but continued to glare at Byakuran anyways.

"Nothing special… just curious if you have done any harm to Tsunayoshi-kun." It was the first time that Giotto had seen the cherubic female put on such a disparaging expression. It was an expression of pure disgust, as if she was looking at the epitome of a human imbecile. Surprisingly it was Tsuna that spoke up to Byakuran's defense – not Byakuran himself. "That's not true, um, nee-san. Tsukiyoshi-san was really nice to me." The Arcobalenos exchanged confused glances.

Tsukiyoshi-san?" Skull's left eyebrow rose. Mukuro and Gokudera were standing next to him, used to the presence of the male. "Tsuna, are you talking about that man over there?" The boy nodded. "Tsukiyoshi-san moved really fast… like…" He seemed to be searching his small dictionary of words. "A cheetah?" He suggested in the very end. Byakuran chuckled. "I'm a nice cheetah, according to Tsunayoshi-kun."

"It must've been a misunderstanding. And Tsuna is too young to be sure of anything." Reborn retorted, as Byakuran shrugged slightly. "Think what you want to think… but I really didn't harm him." He then looked up at the dark, pitch black sky. "It's about time I leave…" He whispered, and turned his back on them and stepped away. "Byakuran, I don't know what your true intentions are… but we will kill you. For sure." Lal Mirch growled under her breath, pulling down the urge to rip off Byakuran's throat.

The male smiled – but Giotto felt awkwardly peculiar at that particular smile. It was not Byakuran's usual sly one, but he seemed to be quite thoughtful, as he opened his eyes, revealing his purple orbs.

"If you can."

**AT THE SECOND BASE…**

"It's rather unexpected that you guys had a spare base." Lampo said lazily, glancing around the place. All the kids were in their assigned bedrooms, though Giotto doubted any of them were sleeping comfortably, after today's incidents. Kyoya was being interviewed in the interrogation room by Luce, and Chrome was going through a treatment session with Knuckle.

"It's not exactly our base. In the past, it was the spare base for the CEDEF group, but was abandoned a few years ago, after Byakuran took over. Right now, Talbot is taking care of it-" "WHO?" The Vongola Famiglia exclaimed in surprise, as Colonello stopped his explaining. "Talbot. The man who was alive since the creation of the first generation of the Vongola." Giotto's mouth was hanging in the air. "He's still alive? That's really creepy, in a sense."

Reborn stood up from the couch he was sitting on. "Colonello, tell Luce that we need to be going soon." Colonello rolled his eyes. "Can't you see I'm trying to be nice person and give an explanation about this unknown mansion we are in? And Luce should be done by now – she said it's only going to take ten minutes." As if to confirm this comment, Luce stepped out of the Interrogation room with Kyoya.

"You guys actually have a place to go?" Daemon frowned. "Yes. I helped them make another one, just in case." Spanner replied in the corner of the room, screwing some nails into a machine he was tinkering with. "Well, we'll be moving out now. We have something to discuss privately, too." Reborn paused. "Talbot should be coming back tomorrow, according to his weekly schedule. Make sure to get enough rest – even if the Millefiore has infinite men, they'll not be able to recover for about three more days."

With that the Arcobalenos stepped out, and started to walk through the forest. Colonello leaned back a little, putting his hands in his pockets. "Tsukiyoshi… you think it's Byakuran's real name?" Silence was present for the next few seconds, until Verde responded quite curtly. "Most likely, yes. I do not trust his words fully, but I see no point in Byakuran lying to Tsuna. I doubt Tsuna even knows who Byakuran really is, after all."

Fon was the one to continue. "Tsukiyoshi is his real name actually. It was recorded so in the Private Information Center of CEDEF." Lal Mirch seemed impressed. "You broke the passcode? That's something to boast about. Well, it's rather questionable that they still left that place open, though." The storm Arcobaleno seemed hesitant to share the next part of what he was about to say. "I had a chance to properly go through the biography and files of Byakuran, Vongola Nono, and our previous boss, Sawada Iemitsu. The result of what I found and analyzed was quite… petrifying, in a sense. It sent chills down my spine."

Verde fixed the position of his glasses, as if the information interested him – in which, it probably did. "Continue." Fon obeyed. "Byakuran. Real name being Yasui Tsukiyoshi. His father is unknown, but his mother is named Yasui Tsukiko. It seemed like she died during the session of her pregnancy – and Vongola Nono adopted him, afterwards." Luce listened, while others questioned.

"Why would out of all people, Vongola Nono volunteer to adopt Byakuran – or Tsukiyoshi, whatever." Skull frowned, as Fon shook his head. "At this point, I don't know. Such information wasn't recorded in the files as well – the accessible files, at least. Other files were deleted by an external being. Vongola Nono on the other hand, did had a wife, but she died through their second year of marriage. Timoteo used that as a cover to pretend that Byakuran really was his son."

"So it was all planned… legit." Reborn grunted, and then blinked. "Wait, Luce, in the Interrogation room, what did Kyoya say?" Luce hummed a little, and started talking. "Nothing special. I just asked basic information, after all. He was sold by his parents apparently, for survival – to the Millefiore. Something interesting might be that… well, remember, when Gokudera-kun invaded a family that was living in a small village?"

"Oh, that family of three? I heard Gokudera only killed the kid's parents… but the kid died later anyways." Colonello noted, and Luce nodded. "It seems like that place was called the Hibari Residence." All the eight walking Arcobalenos paused in their tracks and stared at Luce. The female looked rational and calm. "Then that means the family that Gokudera killed-" "Was Kyoya-kun's family, yes. Kyoya-kun already knew this, so it wasn't very… surprising." Skull grunted.

"Do you think we should tell Hayato or in that case, anyone?" Reborn responded to that question. "No. At least… not yet. Kyoya might say it himself anyways. But Fon, I apologize that I bothered your talk. Please continue." Fon nodded. "I was almost done, so it's no big deal. I didn't talk about Sawada Iemitsu yet, did I? Well anyways, Sawada Iemitsu… married Sawada Nana at a pretty old age, and had his son in the average records, the original Vongola Decimo Sawada Tsunayoshi." He paused.

"But it the private files I read, there was something different. Sure, the basic information about his late marriage was the same… but…"

"Sawada Iemitsu had two wives."

**End of Chapter.**

**Sorry for the late update again, guys. I was suffering an author's block… and stuff. In return, I reduced all the battle scenes and went straight to the point for this chapter.**

**Yamamoto's past is completed here. For those who didn't understand the short flashback, basically – Yamamoto is the classmate that accidentally pushed her off the slide – resulting in the death of Kyoko. The reason Ryohei and Yamamoto don't know eachother is because at that time, Kyoko and Yamamoto were just classmates – they weren't exactly best friends. Ryohei's past isn't over yet, so you'll need to keep reading that…**

**Secondly, Byakuran and Tsuna's past are finally revealing it's true surface. Some of you guys assumed that Tsuna and Hayato were related, but no, as you saw, Hayato is related with Kyoya. I think it's really easy to guess the connection between Tsuna and Byakuran with the hints I've given you today… the problem is the process.**

**Next chapter will be Kyoya's flashback about his past – as I kind of explained it here.**

**Replies:**

**Yura – Tsuna will play an important role from now on, till the end of this story. Thank you for enjoying Mending Hearts.**

**O – Tsuna does have quite an uneventful story that will be revealed in the future as well. Thanks for the review.**

**Natsu Yuuki – Lambo's past isn't connected with anyone, and Hayato's past is related to Kyoya. Thanks for the constant reviews every chapter.**

**Giotto27 – I hope it gets more exciting from now on.**

**Thanks for everyone else who favorited or followed. I was really surprised that I got more than 250 followers, even after my long break. **

**Until my next update,**

**~Meiko~**


	15. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**QUICK A/N: The start of this chapter might be a little confusing – but understand the facts that Gamma and Genkishi actually escaped from the Melone base as well, before it exploded. Then the introduction wouldn't be as challenging to process through. Enjoy your read.**

Alaude lied down on his bed. The kids were sleeping in their own respective rooms, and so were the adults. The blonde reluctantly closed his eyes, processing the events that happened throughout the whole day. It was surely not one of the most delightful and peaceful ones – he could assure it. He opened his eyes again, and turned to the side and heaved a light sigh.

"What do you want?"

A gust of mist flames appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the dark room. Alaude at first assumed it was Daemon, but he was proved incorrect. It was Genkishi. The cloud guardian tilted his head to the side, and clucked his tongue. "I believe this is the first time I have made an encounter with you." The latter just stood back, not saying anything for the next few seconds. "My name is Genkishi." He said, as Alaude didn't respond. "I was formerly acquainted with the Giglio Nero." Alaude noticed how the male used the word, 'formerly'. "And?"

"I am not anymore, as you can tell from my statement above." Genkishi went on. "I am just here to pass you on an important message from Byakuran-sama." The blonde's eyebrows rose insignificantly, as his fingers unconsciously reached for the handcuffs attached to his coat sleeve. "Are you implying to me, that you are not on our side?" He frowned, and Genkishi shrugged very slightly. "No – in fact, I am not implying anything. However, it might make more sense to you if I say I'm not on Luce's side right now."

Alaude didn't release his battle stance. "The message?" "'We are not your enemy. Keep this a secret.'" Genkishi simply said, as Alaude scowled. "What is your true motive behind this?" "It's a long story, if I have to explain – and I don't have the time to do that. Gamma still thinks I am a part of the Giglio Nero. Unfortunately, I have no intention of working for that Famiglia no longer."

"You confuse me." Alaude leaned back on the bedpost. "Is there a reason that Byakuran had specifically told you, to tell me this sort of information? I believe this piece of news was capable of being passed onward to Giotto, as well." Genkishi folded his arms as he pushed his back towards the concrete wall. "Do you know, that a creator always believes that their creation will never betray their trust?" Alaude frowned. "How is this relevant?" "I'm just saying, that Vongola has their own secrets that provide the perfect reason why you should not trust them. And that is why Byakuran-sama had sent the message to you, after the Arcobaleno left. Because I believe you are the one that is the least affectionate towards this organization."

The cloud guardian just smirked. "Comical, hearing this from a one that betrayed one of their own." Genkishi walked towards the window, opening it – as the moonlight shone through. "Please be aware of this – I have not betrayed the Giglio Nero. It was the Giglio Nero that betrayed me." He paused. "Your true enemy is always the ones closest to you."

"Logically, you are the one that's the closest to me right now." Alaude shrugged, as Genkishi smiled a little. "You know humor – that startles me." With that, Genkishi disappeared out the window, as Alaude just stared at the curtains that swayed back and forth, due to the wind. _Your true enemy is always the ones closest to you… _Alaude grunted. "Very cliché, but it works." He had a certain hunch of what Genkishi could be truly saying. The only part he was mystified about was that it was Byakuran who had told him that he wasn't their enemy.

_He had killed half of Vongola's men, forced CEDEF to disband, physically and mentally attacked the children, and now he's claiming he is not our enemy? Very questionable. _The blonde sat up, and then got out of his bed. He had an idea. He quietly walked down the staircase, out his room in a brisk manner, until he stopped himself in front of a firmly shut wooden door. It was open, so he just entered. Hibari was sitting there, fiddling with his tonfas. He seemed unsurprised when he discovered Alaude on the doorstep.

"Can I help you?" He grumbled, not looking up. Alaude stepped in front of the boy, and opened his mouth to speak. "You know the truth, do you not?" Hibari held the handle of his tonfas, watching it gleam under the moonlight. "What truth may you be suggesting?" "The Millefiore." "What about them?" "Are they our enemy?" Hibari remained silent and wordless for a while, as if he was trying to fumble through his thoughts to find the right vocabulary to describe his current situation.

"Yes, technically they are. But in a sense, they aren't. I do not know the details, so it would be better off to not interrogate me further." Alaude slumped down on the bed. "Are you ever going to tell me about yourself?" "Why would I?" The response was immediate, in which Alaude expected. "Because, I believe I have gained some trust from you to receive that much." Hibari shrugged, as he set his tonfas down on his lap.

"I was sold to the Millefiore in place of my little brother. Byakuran used me to gain information about the children that shared the blood of the Vongola, and all gathered them in one place to keep under control. My family was guaranteed safety, at least while I worked for him. But a few years later, I found out that they were killed by the heir of the Scuro Famiglia, which is Gokudera Hayato right now." He explained, as Alaude frowned, but didn't say anything.

"However, if there is something to be suspicious about…" Hibari started off again, as the blonde paid close attention. "Byakuran keeps a detailed list of everyone he has ordered to murder. Spanner helped me hack into the system long ago, and I tried to find the name of my family – but they weren't there. Which only connects to the fact that Byakuran had not ordered to kill my family, and instead, some foreign force imitated to be Byakuran, and used the Scuro Famiglia to assassinate my parents."

Alaude processed all this information through his head at once, trying to reach a conclusion. And when he did, he couldn't be any more disgusted than he had in his whole life. He stood up, and walked out. "Thank you for being honest." Hibari didn't say anything in response, as he held his tonfas up in front of him again. "You seem to be very fond of those. Who gave them to you?" Alaude asked before he completely exited the room. "… Fon. He secretly came into the compartment I was in, during his infiltrating mission of the Estraneo, and gave them to me as a present. Never heard of him afterwards, until today." Alaude nodded, as he closed the door.

He massaged his temples, as he slowly went back to his own room. _Could it be, that our actual enemy is…_

It was definitely a very dark night.

**THE NEXT DAY…**

The first generation all woke up, only to see the kids chattering about in the living room. Some seemed obnoxious, with the presence of Hibari in the vicinity, but most of them cared less. "Ah, good morning, Giotto-san!" Tsuna waved, as Giotto smiled, ruffling the brunette's hair. "Good morning, Tsuna. What were you all doing?" "Just talking. We were all waiting for you to all wake up. It's already nine, so…" The boy trailed off, as Giotto chuckled.

"Very well, you are reasonable. I wonder if there is anything to eat… though I'm not actually that hungry." He glanced around the large mansion, (which really, was capable of being attacked any moment) and heaved a sigh. "G, did you check the kitchen?" "I can't find it." "Don't look for a kitchen that looks like the ones in our time, now." "Is it this one?" "That's the bathroom, G." "Oh. Well, fuck."

After a while of touring around, they finally found the kitchen that was at the very end of the house. Of course, since the males didn't have any idea where to start anything, Gokudera and Yamamoto helped Elena make breakfast – while some just wandered around. Mukuro was outside, alone, and Hibari also had disappeared elsewhere. In which, the adults did not worry much, as they were perfectly aware of the fact that those two could take care of themselves. In fact, they would be offended if they were to be taken care of.

"Giotto, the eggs are frying itself." Elena tilted her head to the side, as she saw the eggs sizzling on the pan. "It's called, a stove." Gokudera grumbled, as he slid the eggs and the bacon to the side, and slipped them on a plate. "Is Mukuro and Hibari going to eat as well? Because if not, I'm not making any more." The silverlette moved the pan back and forth, as Yamamoto used another pan, doing the same.

"Onii-san said that he wasn't going to eat breakfast." Chrome whispered, as Daemon tilted his head to the side. "Onii-san?" The little girl nodded, not saying much more. _So Mammon had returned her stored memories that she found in the laboratory… wait, this doesn't… _Daemon's eyes narrowed, the information he had received, and the words he had heard all at once – and processing them through.

He signaled to G for an emergency meeting after breakfast **(I was just assuming, that since they are technically the mafia, that they would have some quick codes for communication. I do not know whether organizations really talk to eachother like this.) **as G passed on the message to the rest of them in the room. They all nodded, acting as if nothing had happened. Soon, they were all sitting around a rectangular table in an old storage place, where clearly Talbot has given lesser attention to than other areas in the mansion.

"So, Daemon – your reason for calling a meeting?" Giotto spoke up, tapping the wooden table with his three fingers. Daemon cleared his throat, and started his speech. "I have uncovered something very disturbing, in terms of the Arcobaleno. Well, more uncovering, it can be categorized as a discovery. A fogged factual event, if I should say."

"Stop sugarcoating your words and drop straight to the point, Daemon. _C'est ennuyant_. (Meaning, 'It's annoying' in French.)" Alaude stroked the edge of his coat, glaring at the melon-headed illusionist. Daemon just huffed, as he went on. "I was getting to it, Alaude. Patience, for goodness sake. But anyways." He looked up, as he supported his chin with his right hand. "As you could tell earlier, Chrome and Mukuro had clearly recovered their memories – the fact that they are unnoticeably siblings."

"And?" Lampo frowned, as Knuckle gave him a stern look.

"The reason Mukuro's mist flames had not gotten out of control the past years, was because Mammon had been taking care of him behind his back. The reason Chrome is still alive, after she have lost her organs and needed a transplant – modern technology probably took some part in it, but it would be mostly because also Mammon and Lal Mirch had supported the overall system with illusionary organs. Until here, it is all understandable.

"The mystery begins here. Verde was a part of the Estraneo Lab, and they even claim that Fon and Mammon, as well as Reborn and Colonello were often sent to their laboratory for infiltration missions, and for partial extermination of the scientists. During that process, it wouldn't have been very challenging for professionals like them, to retrieve Mukuro and Chrome's memories and have them recover it. If they didn't wanted to be found out, they could've created an illusionary tube replacing the system with their memories contained, and have Mukuro (Chrome was not a part of the specimens, as she had foster parents) act as if he was still brainwashed.

"Why did they have to wait until that very moment to retrieve their memories and give it back to them? Couldn't they have done it earlier? It just really confuses me, personally. Also, they do say that their goal is to defeat the Millefiore – but here is what I do not understand. Nono is dead. Tsuna is the heir to the Vongola Decimo, with the blood of Giotto in his vessels. If we say that the goal of the Millefiore is to assassinate all the kids that have the possibility of supporting Tsuna and Vongola, then the goal of Arcobaleno is obviously the opposite. But that is not what is happening, if you analyze my explanation above. Get what I mean?"

Asari blinked. "I did not understand completely, but I think I do get that your point is… that the Arcobaleno's actions and words do not match, right?" "Exactly. What do they plan to do afterwards? What will they do with Tsuna and the other children?" Daemon tilted his head to the side, is a questioning manner. Alaude closed his eyes as he reminded himself of the events of the other night. Giotto on the other hand, had been keeping his cool composure as he carefully listened to his mist guardian speak.

"Are there any other arguments towards Daemon's statement there?" He glanced around the room, as G cleared his throat. "Mine is not an agreement to anything, but I do have something that bothered me for quite a while and I want to clarify the fact." Giotto frowned. "Is this relevant to what we are discussing upon now?" "It's not completely relevant as far as my own knowledge extends, but it suggests a possibility. And furthermore, it will interest you. Who knows? Someone among us might be holding the answer to my question." G shrugged, as Giotto nodded. "Very well. Continue."

"Hayato has killed a family before, mistaking them as Tsuna's. But it actually turned out that it wasn't Tsuna, and Hayato had murdered the wrong family. Here comes my question: Hayato claimed that it was Byakuran that had gave the orders, including the address. But if that family wasn't Tsuna's, what was Byakuran's true motive?"

Knuckle quietly spoke up. "There is a possibility that it wasn't Byakuran, as well. We aren't even sure whether the communication was done by face to face, or just simply through someone else. We cannot simply come to a decision that it was Byakuran that had committed everything."

"If it's about Kyoya, then don't we someone that we can go to immediately, before looking out any further?" Elena asked with her silent but soothing voice. The eyes turned to Alaude, who had grunted. "It was Kyoya's house that Hayato had attacked. Due to that, Kyoya had lost his parents a few years after he was sold to the Millefiore." G slammed the table as he pointed his index finger at Alaude angrily.

"If you had knowledge about such things, isn't it in the right behavior for you to tell us?" He growled, as Alaude glared meaningfully at the right hand man. "I have only acquired of this information yesterday. I apologize I couldn't get it through any sooner." The man's words were tainted with much sarcasm, as Asari rubbed G's back, indicating to him to calm down.

Alaude continued. "He also mentioned the fact, that Byakuran keeps something like murder list. He has records of people he had killed, and ordered his own men to kill. For some reason, Kyoya's parents weren't mentioned." Knuckle nodded. "That decreases the possibility that it was Byakuran involved in that incident more drastically. But who could've it possibly been, to imitate Byakuran and give such orders?"

Giotto could feel his Hyper Intuition wanting to inform him of something. He concentrated as much as he could, but his brain was overloaded with too many mysteries and unanswered questions that were left blank on his sheet of paper kept in his head. All he knew was that there was something much more to all this battle between the two Famiglias – the Millefiore and the Vongola – and there was also another foreign force that was interfering in the middle. All of them matched and connected, but Giotto had yet to gather all the puzzle pieces just yet.

Suddenly, their glass window was thrown open, revealing Spanner – holding some unknown creature. "We have a customer." He grumbled, throwing the person he was holding to the floor.

"Ow… Spanner, be more gentle." The male on the floor whimpered, rubbing his back as he sat up. He fumbled for the glasses that dropped right next to him, and cleared his throat.

"Um… my name is Irie Shoichi. Nice to meet you."

**MEANWHILE…**

"I'm bored, Byakuran~!"

"Now, now, Bluebell. You do know that our boss is very busy, especially after that incident where the Melone base shattered into pieces. Or ashes, I do not know. He is disappointed too, because our dear Zakuro failed in killing that Irie guy." Kikyo smiled, as Zakuro yelled in the corner.

"Shut up, Kikyo! It's not like you were fucking there or anything – on the camera he was located at Area 17, but he wasn't there when I went, okay?" The red head growled, as Kikyo chuckled. "Very well, very well. I accept your excuse, though it isn't very convincing. Nor believable, but you know. Don't you think so too, Bluebell?"

The girl nodded in agreement. "Zakuro is an idiot anyways. Buu~!" She stuck out her tongue towards the said male. Torikabuto just sat in the background, as Daisy muttered words of mysterious comfort into the ears of his bunny doll. Byakuran, on the other side, was supporting the side of his face with his left hand, waiting for someone to call him. When his phone rang, he picked it up immediately, not even bothering to check the caller ID.

"Genkishi?" He lowered his voice as he spoke.

"_I have passed on your message, Byakuran-sama. I did manage to kill Gamma away, but I lost track of the Arcobaleno, as much as I hate to inform you of this."_

"That's fine. What about Irie?"

"_I saw him enter the mansion with Spanner a few minutes ago, Byakuran-sama. The plan was a success."_

"Excellent. I will give you more orders-"

Suddenly, the line went off, along with a breathtaking yelp that was heard on the other side. Byakuran's eyes rose, as the call ended. _Genkishi? _He looked behind him, at the group of the Real Funeral Wraths. That very moment, a male wearing the uniform of the White Spell entered, panting heavily as he coughed out the words he was about to say.

"E-emergency, Byakuran-sama! The Lab- Specimen L, Lambo Bovino has disappeared!"

Byakuran's eyes flared dangerously.

_It's them._

**End of Chapter.**

**I'm sorry each chapters are always so late. But anyways.**

**Plot twist is present, and if you reread my story all over again, you might be able to figure out what it truly going on. I won't spoil anything more for you guys.**

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**~Meiko~**


	16. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

"Byakuran-sama."

The called male turned around on his chair and smiled. "Yes, Kikyo?"

"Daisy and Torikabuto have retrieved Genkishi's body. He was found dead in the middle of the woods, near Saitama, and the emergency Vongola base that Talbot is currently taking care of. The specifics of the condition of his body are in this document." Pause. "What should we do? If Genkishi had carried out his mission as ordered that means at least one person in the first generation should've been warned. Shall we take further actions, or stay back and be put on hold?" Kikyo reported swiftly, as Byakuran hummed.

Tapping his finger on the desk, he spoke. "If Genkishi had made an intelligent decision, which I want to believe he has – he would've informed Alaude." Kikyo tilted his head to the side, as if in need of an explanation. "Alaude is an unprejudiced man. In the records it might've said he was devoted to the Vongola Famiglia, but in truth he was obliged to follow the means of Giotto Ieyasu Sawada, not the Vongola. Which basically is telling us that there is a possibility that Alaude might switch sides and listen to what we have to say."

"I see. Would there be any method of how we can approach Alaude in person without allowing others to notice?" Kikyo questioned, as Byakuran sighed.

"In truth, I would like to trust Alaude in making his own decisions, and spreading the information to the first generation. That would lessen the risk of revealing ourselves to the Arcobaleno and would just make all our efforts that were put in until now shatter, and that is not what I have in mind."

The door slammed open, as a disgruntled looking man entered with a sly grin plastered over his face. "Which means, we just kill all of them." Zakuro said, as Kikyo shook his head in disappointment. "That is not what we do, Zakuro. The Arcobaleno aren't empty-headed. In fact, I believe they would've noticed by far, that we are starting to take action, which means they would react accordingly. It is dangerous to make such obvious movement."

"Kikyo is right. It is certainly taking an enormous risk, to reveal us to the enemy. That would danger the first generation of the Vongola as well." Byakuran paused. "I need time to come up with a brand new plan. Would you all exit the room for a while?" Byakuran smiled, as Kikyo and Zakuro nodded, exiting the office without arguing.

The man heaved a sigh once more, reminding himself of the conversation he had shared in a friendly manner with Genkishi.

"_Byakuran-sama, I have a question." Genkishi said, as he looked down on Byakuran, who was sitting down and examining the sheets scattered on his desk._

"_Yes, Genkishi?" _

_The latter seemed rather hesitant to speak. "Is there a particular reason that you do not prove your innocence of what you have committed to the kids? You were not related to that accident of the misunderstanding with the Scuro Famiglia, as well – and the reason you have bought in Mukuro was to protect him, wasn't that so?"_

_Byakuran stared up into the latter's steel eyes, and smiled very slightly. "You think so?" He then looked back down at his papers. "Yes, it might seem like I am doing something useless in a third-person's perspective. And besides, like you have stated, they are kids. No matter how strong the mentality, kids are easily scarred. I am doing this for their sake, but they wouldn't understand. They would think that it would be better off dying. They would think perpetually, that is was me that have tortured them for eternity. When it's actually the opposite, of course."_

_Genkishi was silent for a while, until he voiced his opinion again. "Was that directed at yourself?"_

_Byakuran shrugged. "Maybe."_

Genkishi had a sense of excelling insight, that it impressed Byakuran to certain extents – which is why he was quite despondent of his subordinate's death. Sighing exasperatedly, he flipped over the thin document Kikyo has handed him.

"When they found him his body was still quite warm, but stiff… there has been evident proof that he had tried to resist – estimated reason of death is directs to the stab done through his chest." Byakuran read aloud, and then found something odd about the text that continued on. "Damage in surrounding areas was presumably done with lightning flames." _Why does this sentence bother me? _Purple orbs gleaming beneath the light, Byakuran quickly contacted the navigating team.

"_Area R-78 on, Byakuran-sama. What business do you need to attend us for?"_

"You have located the Arcobaleno for the past few weeks, yes?"

"_We have, sir. Would you want their location now?"_

"Not now, but yesterday's… around the afternoon, a little before Genkishi was found dead. Also, please inform me of when Lambo Bovino from the Laboratory had gone missing."

"_Very well sir, just a minute please." _Silence hung between the lines, as Byakuran impatiently tapped his index finger on the table, biting his lower lip. _"Our records say that the Arcobaleno was located around Tokyo tower that evening, sir. And Lambo Bovino's estimated time of escaping the Lab is about an hour before Genkishi's death."_

Byakuran mumbled thanks and hung up. "They finally did it, didn't they…" Gritting his teeth, he sucked in raspy breaths of contaminated air. "Tsuna…" He reminded himself of the dreaded memories of years ago, that were in black and white.

"_Nono, about Tsuna…"_

_Byakuran frowned. Some conversation was going on between his father and his subordinate, and he didn't know what._

"_Hush, Iemitsu. Do not speak lightly of that name."_

_Tsuna? Who's that? Byakuran thought, peeking into the small gap of the door, where he could see the boss of the CEDEF buildings, and his father talking with serious and stern expressions. _

"_What you have done to Tsukiko is crime, Iemitsu. It was unexpected of her to die from pregnancy. Which is why I decided to adopt and take care of Byakuran. You might've been happy with the marriage of Nana, and the creation of that small boy afterwards… but do not forget, Byakuran is your son, not mine."_

_Byakuran's eyes widened. He stared at the blonde man inside the room, his mouth slightly hanging in shock. He gulped and leaned forward to get a better look, managing to behave calmly without getting noticed. The conversation continued in hushed voices._

"_My love for Tsukiko was just nothing but a flash that happened. It all went by so fast, that I couldn't keep up with it. Byakuran… no, Tsukiyoshi might be related to me in blood, but would never be emotionally or mentally connected to me."_

_Byakuran felt his hand digging into the walls. He ran down the hallway, cold sweat dampening his back, as he slammed the door of his room behind him. He had lost the artificially made airplane he had created to show his "father." _Father? _Byakuran dropped himself on the tiled floor. _

_Tsukiko was the name of his mother. He knew that much. A feeling of betrayal and his guts twisting in his stomach filled him, as he attempted to grip through the hard ground itself. He wasn't expecting Timoteo to really be his father. That might've been expecting too much. Byakuran knew he was adopted somehow – he couldn't possibly be related to that man out of all people. But to know that his real father had not – or rather would never accept him as family. _

_A painful and befuddling cry echoed throughout the room, as Byakuran slammed his fists on the tiles._

He stared at his monitor, the picture of the broken gravestone the CEDEF members had created for his real father. _Long time no see, Sawada Iemitsu. Your son, Sawada Tsukiyoshi presently alive, is here. Though just through a picture. _"Does it feel nice to be loved?" He growled under his breath. "You'd never know the feelings of what my real mother went though… What Yasui Tsukiko had to go through because of an irresponsible man like you."

The gravestone in the picture didn't respond back. Holding much grief in his eyes, Byakuran sighed and spoke again.

"I hope it's cold and desolate there now, for you."

With that, he turned the monitor off.

**MEANWHILE…**

"So, you're here with the consent of Byakuran… you say?" G twitched in his chair, eyeing him suspiciously.

Irie scratched his head. "Uh… so I do know that I sound really… unbelievable…"

"At least you know it." Lampo grumbled. "But go on."

"But Byakuran-sama is technically on your side, so I just came to tell you that we think fight is unnecessary between these two parties of the battle…"

Smirking, Daemon left a comment. "And you're saying that another battle with another party _is_ necessary? That's debatable."

Irie seemed to look troubled, until he threw Alaude a warning glance for a mere millisecond. Alaude tilted his head slightly to the side, and then just shook his head in response. Irie nodded, and then went on. "Your true enemy isn't Byakuran-sama. I can assure you that much-"

Asari frowned. "And where is your proof?" It was a very unlikely occurrence for the said rain guardian, as he never had lost his temper about anything, had never interrupted someone from merely stating their opinion – or has been angered nor frustrated no matter how major the situation was. However, this time was different. Rage filled him mysteriously – and annoyance built up from whom to actually believe.

Irie simply responded curtly. "I can't answer that question right now – however, it should soon be solved itself. This isn't a sort of conundrum I am giving you, Vongola. I have stated a fact – you just need to escape from your small mind of opinions, and see the whole picture." He was calm – not the panicky man he acted to be until now. Giotto could sense through his Intuition that Irie wasn't lying.

"… Please take him to the Interrogation Room." Giotto heaved a light sigh. "We need time to think-"

The doorbell rang, and the knob clicked open. Luce was smiling, standing at the doorstep. "Hello, Giotto-san – I came to check on all of you-" She then paused, catching her eye on Irie Shoichi, who was giving her an odd expression. "Irie… Shoichi." The Arcobaleno gritted her teeth, managing to return to her normal poker face. "What is he doing here?"

Giotto opened his mouth to respond, just as Alaude wrapped his handcuff around Luce's thin neck. Luce's eyes widened, as Giotto exclaimed; "Alaude, what are you-"

"Woman," Alaude hissed. "You are _not_ touching Primo." He pulled her neck behind towards him, as Luce laughed nervously. "A-Alaude-san, I have no idea what you might be implying to, but it's all a misunderstanding. I don't know what you might have heard from Irie-"

"It was all a part of your trap, I suppose." Alaude smirked, as he pulled his cuff backward, making Luce cough violently. "It was never the Millefiore that attacked any of the kids." The blonde man glared at the female, as the latter's face turned pale. "I truly have no idea what you are talking about. I am rather bewildered, as a matter of fact. Is this how you treat others who have been risking their lives to save you, Alaude, the cloud guardian?" Luce smirked, and Giotto flinched. He wasn't sure whether the Luce he saw just now was the Luce he always knew. He really wasn't sure.

"You've never saved mine." Alaude stuck his chin up into the air stubbornly – and then casually added. "Nor the kids'." He clicked his fingers together, as the cuffs closed itself around Luce's throat. A gust of mist flames erupted in the room, as Alaude spat on the ground. _An illusion… expected. _The kids looked rather startled in the background, except Kyoya and Mukuro who were managing to keep a perfect stoned expression.

"Luce nee-san just disappeared." Chrome held onto the hem of Daemon's coat. "Daemon?" She looked up and asked, as if waiting for some kind of legitimate response from the latter. Daemon just narrowed his eyebrows and took a step back cautiously. He had a bad feeling. Knuckle then looked down on the wooden floor, as his eyes widened. Irie's face turned white, as Spanner whistled. "Out of here – all of you, right this instance!" He pointed towards the door, as all of them rushed outside.

Just after a few seconds they left the mansion, it exploded into pieces, the wooden shelter burning down, as smoke travelled quickly up into the blue sky that was now covered with gray clouds and puffs mixed into the vicinity. Irie shushed them, as he led the way out of the forest. "This way." He whispered, as they made their way out through the woods. Branches scraped their knees and clothes, but that was not the top of their concerns. They were puzzled about the situation enough to even care less about anything else.

"Get on, please. Spanner, would you mind driving? I didn't get my license yet." Irie pleaded, as Spanner grunted, getting on the driver's seat. "You said you would get one since last year." "I keep on failing the tests at the end." "You're hopeless, Shoichi." Spanner stepped on the axel, as he pulled through the empty roads towards the Millefiore base. It wasn't like Irie had told him their destination, but Spanner knew. He knew exactly where they heading for.

The truck abruptly came to a stop in front of the gates, as Irie used his ID to enter. The rest of the Vongola followed in, as Mukuro took a long pause, staring up at the buildings. _I never wanted to come back here. _He glared up at the illuminating glass windows of the base. Kyoya, who was standing next to the small illusionist, also glanced at his tonfas. The boy was quick at reading situations. He sighed, and threw his tonfas aside. Mukuro tilted his head to the side.

"I thought those were your favorite things?"

"I don't need them anymore." Kyoya responded. _Fon never needed me anyways. _He looked down, and continued to walk into the base. He felt a strong hand grip his shoulders tightly. He saw Alaude, and just shook the hand off. The latter smirked and shrugged, shaking his head in comical denial.

As Irie lifted up the cover of the security camera, the heavy metal doors opened, revealing a thin, well-figured woman, who's hair reached till the end of her back. Hayato's eyes widened, as the female just pushed her goggles down. "You're late, Irie." She grumbled. "You should be thankful Byakuran-sama has put no specific time limit to your arrival." Just giving a small nod to the chiding, the male smiled. "My deepest apologies, _Bianchi_." Articulating each syllable of her name, Irie just walked past her. G glanced at Hayato worriedly, looking up between the small boy and the older girl.

"Long time no see, Hayato." She smiled, as Hayato's lips quivered. "Why are you here?" He stuttered nervously. "You're supposed to be dead, Aneki." **(Aneki – polite way of saying older sister)** Bianchi just shook her head, as she stole another glance at the moving crowd. "Catch up with them, Hayato. We can talk later." "But-" "_Hayato_." The boy hesitated, as the older female just patted his head. "I don't go anywhere, Hayato. It's fine."

The boy seemed unconvinced, but ran ahead, catching up with G, who was waiting for him. "Who's that?" G asked silently – but Hayato just shook his head. The latter nodded, deciding not to inquire any more. Irie and the others were standing in front of another door – a pale white one that seemed to shine with marble. "Byakuran-sama, we're going in." A muffled voice responded soon after, and Irie opened the door.

Inside the office was bright and illuminating with rays of the orange sun. Upon all of that, Byakuran was leaning behind on his chair, the 6 Funeral Wraths surrounding him as they stared at the new inhabitants of the room – and in the midst of the crowd, there was Ryohei. The white haired boy's expression was a mere riot and chaos itself – painted with agony and fear. "Would the rest of you exit the room?" Byakuran's voice cracked slightly. "I need a private talk with the eight in here." He eyed the first generation of Vongola Famiglia, and Elena.

"Let's go." Spanner whispered to the kids, as the Funeral Wraths wordlessly stepped out. The door closed shut behind them, as Byakuran sat up straight. He cleared his throat, opening a bag of mallows. "I believe it's our first time sharing a proper conversation, apart from that other day where you destroyed my dearly base quite ruthlessly." His bluntness disturbed Giotto, but the blonde didn't say anything.

"Treachery has been performed between our side, and the Arcobaleno." Lampo opened his mouth. "Are you going to give us an explanation to this?" Byakuran seemed startled at Lampo's courage to speak up, out of all the guardians present in the office. He smiled, and leaned forward.

"The Arcobaleno's goal is to simply make their own sense of the Vongola, and make Tsuna their boss. The original candidate was Xanxus, but their plan was altered, once Tsunayoshi was revealed to their eyes. I tried my very best to keep Tsunayoshi and his future guardians within my reach, but even so they broke my blockade of them." He paused, and heavy silence filled the room. "It's my fault." His expression darkened, as Giotto realized that what Byakuran was spilling out wasn't a mere joke or perfectly covered lies.

"What is _your_ goal, then?" Knuckle's eyebrows rose significantly, as Byakuran closed his eyelids upon his purple orbs. "That is something I shouldn't break to you, just yet." Asari tilted his head to the side. "And why is that so?" "Everything has a right moment to be confessed for." Byakuran sighed, as he looked outside the window. "Now is not the right time for me to say so." G tried to retort, but Giotto held him back and stopped his right hand man.

"I see." The boss said. "Then what are you trying to get through to us?"

"Nothing very grand." The man grinned happily, as he threw a marshmallow into the air, the dessert popping right into his mouth. "I'm asking for us to hold hands and fight together." "Sounds grand enough." Daemon smirked, as Elena held the hem of his sleeve. Byakuran laughed, as he looked up at Alaude. "If this plan didn't work out, I was trying to send a message to your cloud guardian over there and convince you guys… but it seems like he acted on his own."

Alaude just held his chin up high, proud and prideful. "And I succeeded." Byakuran chuckled for a few seconds, but that soon seized. "Genkishi died right after he passed that message to you." Alaude's blue orbs were widened for a millisecond, but returned to normal in a blink of an eye. "So?" He asked. Byakuran looked up at the whole Famiglia, who seemed to be confused at what Alaude and Byakuran were conversing about – but the two just continued, hoping the rest would catch on.

"I imagined the Arcobaleno had this through – in which they probably did. I was certain that it was one of them that would've killed Genkishi – but it wasn't." The white-haired male gave the blonde a cold look. "Lambo Bovino – the youngest boy that was under my protection two days ago 'escaped' from his room. The door was severely damaged, and there were bullet marks painted on the wall. I made by inspection team investigate the scene, and it turned out that the bullets were wrapped in rain flames.

"This made me come to the conclusion that it was Colonello who had kidnapped Lambo from the room. Now what might've happened to the boy? The only answer could be that the experiment being conducted on Lambo had been a success, and they used him as a murder machine and killed Genkishi on the spot, so that they would go unnoticed."

"Why couldn't you stop the experiment from being conducted?" Alaude twitched dangerously. Byakuran shook his head. "The Estraneo is within my reach of control. I cannot stop the experiments they do. What they were testing on the boy was called the AHA Projection – the Artificial Human Android. It's an experiment that only works on certain specimens with rare blood. It didn't work on Mukuro, but I am presuming that it was a success for Lambo."

"Wait, wait- what does this experiment do to one's body? The effects?" Lampo slammed his hand on the table, his whole body shaking with trepidation. Byakuran opened his eyes and looked up at the lightning guardian.

"It's just as it says, it make the body of a mere human into an android that doesn't have any feelings, whatsoever. Lambo is younger than the majority – he is easier to brainwash. It wouldn't have been very challenging for them to alter Lambo's personality as whole."

"Would there be any way to return him to normal?" G questioned, gritting his teeth.

Byakuran just tapped his fingers on the desk.

"There is," He said. "Killing him."

**End of Chapter.**

**It's been a long time, guys. Honestly, I wasn't very enthusiastic in updating chapters for Mending Hearts nowadays, and have occupied myself with other stories and school work. But here is my update.**

**The true antagonist has shown themselves, finally at the journey through the fourteen chapters of this story. More stories are to unveil, like Bianchi, and the end of Ryohei's story tangled to Byakuran's. Please stay tuned.**

**Are more twists to come? Who knows.**

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**Until my next update,**

**-Meiko-**


	17. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

"_Sometimes I wonder what was it that we truly needed to think about." Reborn spoke up, lighting a soggy cigarette in the damp corner, as they all sat around the tight basement that was dotted with moss here and there._

"_What do you mean?" Asked Colonello, staring at the ground between his legs, as he adjusted his shotguns, refilling the bullets. The sun arcobaleno smirked, as he pulled up his fedora. "Oh, you know," He went on, as a dry puff of smoke trailed off from the edge of his lips. "The safety of the Vongola, or our loyalty to Timoteo himself… and then…" "Restarting everything, you mean." Mammon quietly corrected the male, as he chuckled._

"_Sounds a little drastic – we aren't restarting the Vongola. We are merely refurbishing its original form into something that is more… advanced than the former." Reborn explained, as Skull just grumbled. "The base is destroyed – which means we'll just have to recreate it – same difference. Though, I never knew Byakuran would betray this side. Since when has he taken proper action to this? I'm sure he had made preparations for this day."_

"_Byakuran was always a smart boy." Fon smiled, opening the cap of his water bottle. He took a sip, and then continued talking. "It was a good thing he received the majority of his mother's genes. It would've been quite a disaster if the situation was the opposite, don't you think?" Verde just shrugged, tapping away at his laptop that was losing connection momentarily._

"_That boy was never on this side, ever since he was adopted by Timoteo. In a sense, we were fated to fall in an adversarial relationship. What Iemitsu did wasn't exactly respectable after all. Byakuran was being fully reasonable." "Killing his foster father and then his real one? I don't think so." Lal Mirch retorted, as Verde simply fixed the position of his spectacles and remained silent. _

"_It doesn't matter. We just need to keep Tsuna within our reach." Luce said, expressionless. Reborn glanced at her. "What happened to Ryohei?" "He disappeared. Probably Byakuran. He must've noticed that I was trying to take him away. What a shame." She clucked her tongue in disappointment, as she played with the loose string on her hat. _

"_Kyoya was taken by Byakuran long ago… He has Ryohei, Mukuro, and Hayato within reach, too – and possibly the Bovino kid. Tsuna, Chrome, Yamamoto are still on our side, so that's a comfort – but he's technically still at an advantage. His methods will turn against him, though. The kids will think that it was the Millefiore all along that had made their lives miserable." Fon smiled, wrapping his hands around the warm bottle he was holding. "Though that is quite contradictory from the truth."_

"_It seems like we're using the kids. I don't feel comfortable with it." Colonello twitched, as his eyebrows rose insignificantly. "You know, the kind of guilt you feel when you know its not right to use children for your own deeds…" "This isn't only for us. It's for Timoteo – it's for everyone that has lost their important ones to Byakuran." Luce responded bitterly, putting her hat down on her lap._

"_Has Byakuran not lost someone important to him?" Reborn frowned. "He was practically forced to kill his foster father." "That choice was up to him. He chose what he shouldn't have." The crowd went silent at Luce and Reborn's intense conversation. Finally, Reborn just heaved a sigh and shook his head. "Whatever you say, Luce."_

_The sky arcobaleno threw him a wide smile._

"_I knew you would understand, Reborn."_

Reborn just sighed heavily. _It's too late to indulge myself in reminiscence. I have placed my loyalty in Luce. _He paused, looking up at the dark city. Streetlights were flashing in front of his eyes, and the sound of the hustling crowd swept past his the sideburns of his well-cut face. _And yet… I wonder why I'm hesitating now. _He gritted his teeth has he pulled his fedora downward, covering his eyes.

"Reborn?" Fon asked. "Verde calls for you." He handed over his cell phone, pointing it towards Reborn. The latter just stared at it for a while, seeing the seconds tick away further. He finally reached out and brought it close to his ears. "Reborn speaking." _"Reborn, we have an emergency." _"Like what?" _"The tonfas we gave Kyoya – you know how we stuck a tracking device inside it? It stopped in one place. He threw it away. We don't have any other option to take. Do you have any idea where their hideout might be located?" _

_So Kyoya threw the tonfas away… why am I relieved? _Reborn grumbled. "I don't know either. We'll figure something out. They can't activate the IB system anyways to hide their existence of flames, because you were the one who created it." Verde seemed to agree. Reborn returned the phone back to Fon, as he lighted a cigarette. They both got in the car, and Reborn opened the window, getting on the passenger's seat. He didn't buckle his seatbelt – which annoyed Fon.

"So, where are we heading?" The storm arcobaleno questioned, as he hung up on Verde. "I don't know." Reborn mumbled, breathing out. "Probably… where Kyoya's signal stopped." "I'm kind of feeling sentimental, though. I didn't even know that that tonfas had tracking devices attached internally until Luce told be after I passed it on." Reborn just stared at the blurry surroundings. "It doesn't matter anymore." He responded, as Fon just frowned, giving Reborn an odd glance.

"I guess it doesn't."

**MEANWHILE…**

"I'm confused."

It was the first word that was confessed from the awkward silence that was wrapping the first generation family in their respective bedroom. Knuckle was the one that broke it, in fact – as the rest of the members just simply glanced back curiously at the latter. "I always thought that it was Byakuran who had ruined the kids. I always imagined him to be working for his own purposes, his own goals – selfish and evil as any other lustful, greedy man. But his real self is the complete opposite."

The others seemed to agree in silence. Lampo then brought up the second topic, now held sensitive among them. "What are we going to do when we meet Lambo?" His voice was shaking, Alaude could tell, being the nearest to the lightning guardian at that moment. "Spanner didn't take the news very well, did he?" Asari clucked his tongue, tilting his head to the side. "His eyes widened, and he didn't say anything for the rest of the hour."

G grunted. "No one would take news like that well. Lambo is practically nothing but an android holding the form of a human with flesh, after all. He doesn't possess feelings, emotions, memories, and… everything." The words were choked out. The storm guardian gritted his teeth. _I couldn't do anything, _He thought, regretting his past actions that were rather harsh towards the boy.

"What would he think of us?" Giotto's voice cracked. "We couldn't save him – at all." "He can't think." Daemon just responded curtly. "I'm rather glad he can't." Lampo just bit his bottom lip, clenching his fists tightly into white balls as he gripped his hair furiously, though not making any sound.

"… _I like hide-and-seek."_

_Why didn't I protect him? Why wasn't I next to him? Why couldn't I spare the time to play with him, even once? Why… couldn't I treat him as if he was my son? _Lampo's expression darkened resentfully. "Why?" He whispered, his voice raspy under his breath. Elena held his shoulder and rubbed it comfortingly, though wordless. It was as if she was trying to tell him, that it wasn't his fault. Lampo cared less. He couldn't do anything – and it was already done for.

"I should've saved him. Regardless whether the base was going to explode or not, I should've –" "You wouldn't have made it." Alaude cut him off, glaring at him. "We don't need any sacrifice necessary in this battle."

"Then what about Lambo?!" Slamming his palm onto the rough surface of the table, Lampo stood up and exclaimed, startling Alaude in the very slightest. Lampo didn't get agitated much about anything – even in the gravest situations. Even Giotto seemed pretty alarmed about Lampo's sudden outburst. "… What about him?" Lampo just murmured, slowly sitting back down. "If there is no sacrifice necessary, why is the only method of seeking deliverance for the boy… killing him?" The lightning guardian just paused, before continuing. "I really don't know."

Daemon just heaved a sigh, as he sat up on his own armchair that he occupied for himself. "I am sure there is an alternate option for the boy to survive." "Like what, Spade?" Alaude just questioned, his expression cold. The illusionist couldn't respond, much to his frustration. A sudden knock interrupted the tension filled in the room, as Giotto told the said person to come in. The door creaked open, and standing there was Rokudo Mukuro. The boy had a scowl plastered onto his face, looking befuddled.

"Mukuro?" Daemon frowned questionably. "What are you doing here?"

The boy looked up, hesitating to speak. "I… heard about the little Bovino's condition." He stopped to inspect the reaction of the adults. "I know about the details of the AHA Projection, and how it is experimented," Mukuro said, sitting down on a nearby couch. "I was a specimen of them too, after all." Going on, he added, "I'm assuming you heard about the way to save Lambo from that, and that it is to kill the android."

"And?" G tapped his fingers on the side of his own couch. Mukuro just looked down. "There was a time where the practice experiment worked on me. I still have some fuzzy memories of that time – I couldn't control my own body, and my thoughts were completely blocked out. I still contained emotions, but… since my whole existence was under the Estraneo's control, it was technically useless. Lambo is probably in that state currently."

Alaude's eyebrows rose. "How did you survive?" "Well, it was rather miraculous. When you conduct this experiment, the scientists insert a certain chip and connects it to your nerves, and shocks out a certain part of the brain and substitutes positions with it. They call you an android, but in reality you are simply a human with no control. The way you can survive from this is to take away the remote from the controller, and to remove the chip from the nerves. There is a risk to this, though. If you aren't careful enough, there is a possibility that you may destroy the nerves and kill the human being occupied, so you need someone with at least a little surgical experience to handle the situation."

"And who is suitable for that position?" Giotto inquired, as Mukuro shrugged. "How would I know? Such things are for you adults to decide, isn't it? Don't expect too much from me, geez." Elena smiled, as she ruffled Mukuro's soft hair. "Of course, dear. Giotto just thinks you're that smart." The boy seemed to be a little more delighted at that. He pushed Elena's hand away, and fixed his hair, exiting the room.

**IN THE BASE…**

"Byakuran-sama." Irie knocked down a knight, moving forward. "Was it really a good idea to cooperate with the Vongola so soon?"

The purple-orbed male counterattacked, and set his final piece on the board. "Checkmate." He smiled, and leaned back, as Irie rubbed the back of his neck and groaned, forgetting about Byakuran's response. "Well, to be honest… It was quite a daring move that I had to experiment myself. Risky – very risky, too, but I think it's working out pretty well – and that's the only the thing that matters, right?"

"No, Byakuran-sama, that's not the only thing that matters." Spanner murmured, cleaning up the pieces and the board for them, setting them off to one side. "How are you possibly going to take care of this? Even with the Six Funeral Wraths, Mammon is heavily guarded by the Varia, and among the Estraneo there were spies of Verde. The whole Giglio Nero – the Black Spell stands with Luce, and the Arcobalenos alone are still powerful. What is your plan?"

Humming a calm tune aloud, Byakuran simply looked up at Spanner and laughed. "A plan? That sounds nice." The inventor gave Byakuran an expectant glance, and the latter just sniffed the air. "Well, in truth, I am not very worried about the turn of events. So far, it is going just as planned, after all. Though we lost all of our troops of White Spell, we still have 4 inventors, which include Sho-chan, Spanner, Giannini, and Talbot. Then there's the seven of us, the eight of the first generation, and the seven kids."

"But Byakuran-sama, the kids don't professionalize in handling their dying will flames yet." Irie protested. "Very well, Kyoya, Mukuro, and Ryohei are trained under our divisions, but what about the rest? They can't possibly participate in the battle!"

"We'll be able to make good use of at least five of the kids among that group in the actual battle. Nagi-chan would need to help with one of our current systems, the ID Projector. **(Stands for Illusionary Defense, where walls of mist flames cause the enemy to see illusions and misdirect their destination. Differs from IB system, where it is simply a barrier. Not mentioned in anime – created by author.)** That means Daemon Spade wouldn't have to participate in the process of the Projection."

Frowning, Spanner retorted. "And exactly how long would Nagi-chan be able to hold off that technique? The ID Projector requires a high concentration of mist flames, Byakuran-sama – it is not a movement an amateur can pull off in a matter of days."

"Nagi-chan is an amateur, but that doesn't calculate the measure of her potential, does it?" Byakuran tilted his head to the side, as if to ask a rhetorical question in such mannerisms. "Very well, the ID Projector does require a high concentration of mist flames – but I trust that Nagi-chan would be able to pull that off quite well. It's not even like we're going to hold it off for the whole hour – it would be at most, twenty minutes. We're just providing ourselves some time to make necessary last minute preparations to go against our actual enemy."

"So basically, the ID Projector would only be used for the Black Spell troops that would assumingly charge at us first." Irie concluded, and Byakuran just gave him a nod.

"The Arcobaleno are probably going to attack us with the Black Spell troops first, because that saves them time as well. We'll have to flip the tables and make this an advantage. It's truly a shame that we don't have Genkishi on our side anymore, because or else I would've given him the job to run the ID Projector, but since he is no longer with us, Nagi-chan would be given that duty."

Spanner bit his lip and just asked cautiously. "No physical harm would be done to her in the process, right? We don't want that, especially with her now regaining her memories, along with a protective brother and two non-biological parents tagging next to her, do we?"

Laughing in a sense of good humor, Byakuran just shook his head. "No physical harm, or in that case, any kind of harm. We would make sure she doesn't overexert herself, because that would be a problem in its own words, if you get what I mean here. We wouldn't want her to exhaust herself out, especially when her organs are still very unstable. It would be dangerous to put her on the battlefield too, for that matter."

Agreeing silently, Irie looked outside the window. "How long do you think it would be until the final battle, Byakuran-sama?" Byakuran smiled widely, seemingly occupying himself with the thought of going against such formidable opponents.

"The thing I am certain about is that our first battle wouldn't be our final." The male responded accordingly, closing his eyes. "There is less than a five percent chance that all of us would even survive the first one, and the second the percentage just gets lower since we don't even know whether it will be our last one."

"How many deaths are you assuming at the most?" Spanner questioned, though not in a very curious manner.

Byakuran just tapped his finger on his desk. "Let's see… I don't have an exact calculation set for how many people on my side would die, you know…" He merely grinned, and looked up. "I'm hoping for no deaths at all, to be honest." Then he just gave Spanner a warning glance, as if to convey a message through. "Don't do anything risky, Spanner-chan."

The inventor gave him an awkward look. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing."

**A FEW DAYS LATER…**

"Chrome- I mean, Nagi, how's the training going?" Yamamoto laughed, rubbing the back of his head, throwing his sword back into the cabinet. The shy girl just stuttered her response, as Yamamoto casually leant in to listen.

"I-um… it's going well…" She whispered to the other boy, as Yamamoto gave her encouraging nods. Gaining some confidence in her words, she went on. "D-Daemon-san is helping me with the concentration of flames and… um, I am able to maintain the system for a longer time that when I first started." The latter grinned happily as she finished.

Gokudera, who was walking by, stopped. "What's going on, sword boy?"

"I'm Yamamoto Takeshi, Gokudera." The boy kindly corrected. "But Chrome-chan here is learning from Daemon-san, you know? To activate the ID Projector during the battle the adults are talking about." Gokudera glanced at the girl with a flushed face, squirming at her spot. Then lifting his hand up, he patted her head.

"Good job." He said, as Chrome looked up and gave him a bright, radiating expression. If Daemon had been present, Mukuro was certain that he would've suffered a severe nosebleed. Tsuna had decided to tag along with Gokudera and Yamamoto, and just stood there silently, not knowing what to say to Chrome. In the end, he was younger than her after all. It did not exactly help that Tsuna was socially awkward with people with general.

Hibari, who was just observing them in the far corner, looked up at the ceiling as he crouched down in the corner. _Something isn't right about the air today. _He tilted his head to the side, glancing at the surveillance cameras. No alarm was going off, and there were no signs of attack shown from the Arcobaleno – if they would do so first at all.

_I guess it's just me… _He stood up at stretched his arms, and dusted off his pants. "Now, where's that idiotic boss…" Hibari clucked his tongue.

_**FLASHBACK…**_

"_Kyoya-chan!"_

_The mini skylark seethed his teeth and growled. "What's with the sudden change in treatment, Byakuran?" The white-haired male just smiled, though quite despondently. He turned in his chair, showing his back to Hibari. The boy stood exactly where he was, unmoving._

"_Do you want to kill me?" The older man whispered, as the younger one flinched, as if the darkest side of his mind was suddenly bare, out in the open for everyone to see. "Of course you do." He muttered, and glanced back in regret at him. "You and Mukuro. Both of you, I guess." _

_The latter just furrowed his eyebrows, not knowing how to respond to this sudden proposal. Byakuran went on. "I want you to know though – it may sound like an excuse, but I didn't kill your family-" "I know." Hibari stopped him abruptly. "I don't need you to tell me that."_

_Byakuran looked quite startled. "Oh, really?" Hibari yawned and turned on the heels of his sneakers. "I will hate you, this way or that." The boy mumbled, and then added. "It's too late to change the connection between us – but I will follow you until your death anyways. I don't exactly have an alternative, you see." He pointed out, as Byakuran just closed his eyes, showing a light smile._

"_Thank you for your honest response."_

_**END OF FLASHBACK…**_

Walking down the hallway, Hibari suddenly stopped, as he felt the floor vibrate. He started running towards the nearest exit, and ripped open the door. Sprinting up towards the security tower, Hibari gritted his teeth. Panting slightly, the boy looked at the blank scenery that opened up in front of him. Scenery almost too blank, and too silent. "Tsk."

"I see, they have outdone our plan." Daemon appeared out of nowhere, surprising the latter. He was using the Devil Lenses he possessed of, observing the fields with much intensity. "They activated the IB System to hide their flames, and engulfed themselves in the mist flames as well, so that they would go unseen. I'll have to make a report… if we don't react in at least five minutes, it'll be too late to escape." Daemon disappeared from sight, as Hibari stared down at the green fields, boring his eyes into them. He could see waves of dust flying around, as the carelessly done mist flames didn't manage to hide their footsteps in the process.

Meanwhile, Daemon rushed to the office using his own teleportation skills, stopping right in front of Byakuran's desk. "Hey, you." He called out, to the sleeping boss. "They were out of your calculations. They're already here, so get your troops moving right now." Byakuran opened his eyes, and smirked.

"Oh no, I saw through that much."

"Nagi can't activate the ID Projector right now. She's exhausted from her morning training a few hours ago." The illusionist stated, as Byakuran stood up, his cloak flying in the air as he swung it around his shoulders. "Which is why, Daemon Spade, you are taking care of that for now." The latter frowned, and pointed at himself.

"Of course. I can't possibly let Nagi-chan take the frontlines first. You're going to take care of the first twenty minutes of the battle, and then I will switch you out with Nagi-chan. That should give her enough time to recover, at least a little bit." Byakuran yawned, and then grinned. "Enough of talking. We have a battle to fight."

**DOWN IN THE CONTROL ROOM…**

"And that's why you're down here with me?" Irie asked, and Daemon just growled, his whole body leaking of powerful mist flames.

"Your boss is a terrible guy. If it weren't for the kids, I wouldn't even be doing this annoying duty." _Putting that aside, this is pretty tiring. It's only been ten minutes, too… It's putting a strain on my arms. _The illusionist thought, as he poured more mist flames into the Projector. Since he was one of the few illusionists that could see through the IB System, he was ordered to watch over the movement of the troops and controlling the ID Projector to confuse them. "I see about hundred men moving south, towards the back of the base… two hundred or more to the unguarded east as well. Don't lose concentration, Byakuran." Daemon grumbled, reporting.

Irie cleared his throat. "Lampo-san, how is it going?"

The called other responded lazily over the contactor. "They're pretty weak, actually. I guess the Black Spell wasn't very powerful in terms of strength, compared to the White Spell? I can't see them, but I am able to make out their silhouettes and everything." Another sound of an explosion went off in the far off distance.

Irie nodded, as Daemon grumbled and glanced at the clock. His twenty minutes were almost up, and soon it was his time to switch with Chrome. Honestly, he didn't want to hand over the job to the girl – only because he was worried for her wellbeing. In the midst of Daemon sighing over this matter, he scowled at the sudden change of mood on the screen. Trying his best not to lose his focus on the ID Projector, Daemon requested Irie to zoom into a certain point of the screen. His eyes widened realization.

"Isn't that Lambo?" Daemon whispered, as Irie fixed his glasses into a better position.

"I can't tell. His body is wrapped in some armor, I think." The inventor replied. "How can you tell its Lambo, anyways?"

"The mark under his eye. It can only be Lambo." Daemon muttered. "What is he doing there?" Irie bit his bottom lip and quickly sent a report to everyone on the battlefield.

"Lambo spotted in Area 3, North."

-**Mending Hearts-**

Spanner looked up at the sky, closing his palm around the earplug. "Area 3, North…" He muttered under his breath, as he took a step towards his decided destination. Byakuran's words lately echoed in his head, as if to warn him.

"_Don't do anything risky, Spanner-chan."_

_It might be too late to tell me that, Byakuran. _Spanner thought bitterly, moving forward as he threw the lollipop he was holding in his mouth to the ground.

"Where are you going?" Lampo frowned at him. "Your designated Area is here, not 3." Spanner just shrugged, moving forward. "There was a change in plans."

Lampo sniffed the air, and then closed his eyes, putting his gun away.

"That sounds fun."

**End of Chapter**

**I don't know whether this chapter was shorter or longer than my previous one, but yeah. Just saying, the locations of all the others are:**

**Area 1: Giotto, Daisy, G, Knuckle**

**Area 2: Spanner, Lampo, Asari, Kikyo**

**Area 3: Torikabuto, Bianchi, Bluebell**

**Area 4: Alaude, Kikyo, Zakuro**

**Base: Elena, the kids, Byakuran**

**Control Room: Irie, Daemon**

**This would change every chapter, as the battle would progress on.**

**I apologize greatly if Hibari is getting too much screen time momentarily – it was important that he showed up to clarify the relationship with him and Byakuran. That'll probably be that last time he'll actually show up as a major role. From now on, it'll be more focused on ones like Tsuna, Byakuran, Gokudera, and Ryohei, and possibly Yamamoto. Please stay tuned as I finish up their stories.**

**There were actually a lot of reviews, but they were from previous chapters, so I wouldn't respond to them. But thanks to all of those who reviewed, anyways!**

**REPLIES!**

**Lacie – I am sorry for my inability to explain who the true villain is properly – to confuse in such a manner. I hope future chapters would clear the clouds up for you.**

**Natsu Yuuki – Yes, it is unexpected for the Arcobaleno to be evil, I suppose. Stay tuned!**

**Ctdiaz – Again, I hope this chapter clarified some confusions for you. Thanks for the review!**

**Arthur Moebius – I wonder what would happen to Lambo? Hm…**

**Until my next update,**

**-Meiko-**


	18. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

_**4 YEARS AGO…**_

"_Reborn."_

"_Yes?"_

"_You're in love with Luce, aren't ya'?" At the sudden question, the sun arcobaleno dropped the cigarette he had stuck in his mouth on the car seat. He cursed and quickly dusted off the ash, trying his best to erase the black burnt mark away, but failing. _

"_What makes you think that?" He asked Colonello, the rain arcobaleno who was driving next to him. The latter shrugged, as he twisted the wheel to his right. Falco was on the roof of the car, flying above their heads in the midst of the roads as they returned back to the Vongola base. _

"_Well," The blonde started off, chewing on his bottom lip as the light changed to red. "Damn that slow car." He whispered under his breath, before he leaned back and waited for the signal to change. "You know, you're always a little mushy with one another, and always all over each other – it's kind of obvious. She likes you, you like her – I think it's time to become a man." Colonello smirked._

_The sun arcobaleno rolled his eyes. "Says the person who hasn't been able to confess to his dear love for the past 5 years." Colonello glared at the latter for that, but didn't deny it. He stepped on the axel as the cars started to move, and then they both silently entered through the gates of the base without a single word, until they reached their destination. _

_The first realization Reborn had made to himself was that the base seemed a little more eerie than usual. No commotions, no riots, no chaos at all. Something was out of ordinary, was something he needed to take note of. Colonello seemed to feel the same way, seeing how he glanced at Reborn in a peculiar manner, as if to get something out of him. Reborn didn't respond, as they both stepped forward._

"_Reborn?" _

_A raspy whisper shook the sun arcobaleno, and tore him down. Luce's eyes were red and puffy, her face pale as she held on to the wall. It was evident she had been sobbing for quite a while, as she dropped to the floor on her knees. The primary emotion the taller male had felt was pure anger. He wanted to murder whoever had made the one he cared for so dearly, cry. "What happened?" Was all he could ask._

_Luce, as if trying to grab a hold of something, fumbled for reach. Reborn held her hand reassuringly. "I'm here." He muttered. The sky arcobaleno broke down, and didn't say anything for a while. Mammon and Fon came along eventually, after hearing about the entire ruckus. Colonello glared at them, as Fon just looked down on the floor, his expression darkened._

"_Nono…" He choked out. "Passed away."_

_Colonello's eyes widened in shock. His eyes were turning dull in color, as his lips quivered in disbelief. Fists clenched tight, he walked forth for clarification. "What…" The man whispered, "Did you just say…?" Fon didn't look up, and didn't repeat his previous words either. Mammon, being the bystander, decided to step out and explain._

"_Nono was murdered in his office today. A bullet had struck him through the heart – and after a few minutes, Iemitsu was killed in the exact same way. On the security cameras…" The mist arcobaleno heaved a sigh, as she inhaled once again before confessing the truth. "… Byakuran was located." Skull came along lately, his shoulders hunched and his eyes droopy, trying to read the situation._

"_The CEDEF team is taking care of their bodies right now." The cloud arcobaleno reported. "We don't have the next heir of Vongola Decimo or CEDEF. At this rate, Vongola is going to fall at a quick pace." Skull grunted, as he slumped down on the floor that was cold as ice. "Currently, the troops are in much shock – worse than us. Some are already planning to quit their teams, and the CEDEF force itself is breaking apart. Lal Mirch is somehow controlling them, but that is simply a temporary treatment. Lal Mirch can't take care of everything."_

_Colonello gulped, as he gripped his bandanna. He reminisced the times before he left for the mission, where Iemitsu and Timoteo had bid him and Reborn luck. That was their last farewell._

"_We actually do have a suited heir that is to follow Nono." Verde walked into the hallway, his expression as stoic as ever – though his voice more shaky than usual. "Do you guys remember the son of Iemitsu – Sawada Tsunayoshi?" Reborn stood up and quickly prepared himself for an argument – but Fon was faster._

"_He's only four years old," The storm arcobaleno muttered. "Wouldn't Xanxus be a better Decimo, according to our current situation?" Most of the others seemed to agree. Verde simply shook his head, being the odd one out. The rest readied themselves for an explanation that was to follow the lightning arcobaleno's claim._

_Clearing his throat, Verde started. "First off, the Sawada bloodline is directly connected to Primo's bloodline. If we could possibly have anyone more suited, it would be Tsunayoshi. Secondly, Xanxus doesn't have the full potential to become a Vongola Decimo. Mammon, you may argue with me about this, but you would have to admit that Xanxus' personality might just transform Vongola into a dictating force." He paused, to see if there were any objections so far._

_Going on after a few seconds, Verde looked up, closing his laptop. "Fon, you were saying that Tsunayoshi is _only _four. I had never suggested that we would have to place him as Vongola Decimo right away. We do not know the following plans of Byakuran, or whether he is going to leave the boy to live or die-"_

"_About that," A rough, female's voice interrupted the scene. It was Lal Mirch, having dark circles under her eyes. "I just received a report from Basil. Sawada Nana was found dead in the living room, a bullet shot through her chest. Sawada Tsunayoshi wasn't seen, though. We are assuming that Byakuran had let the boy survive."_

"_And why is that? Is Byakuran is smart enough, he wouldn't have allowed the boy to live – seeing that he is one of the __possible successors for the Decimo position." Skull frowned in confusion, as Lal Mirch shrugged._

"_Beats me. But please, Verde if you would – continue what you were saying."_

_Verde nodded. "Picking up from what I previously said – Byakuran left Tsunayoshi alive. Which probably indicates that Byakuran either has no intention to kill Tsunayoshi – or is waiting for the boy to grow into his more mature self to go against him, and then murder him. Anyhow, this is an advantage for us, at the moment." He glanced at Reborn. "I want you to inspect Tsunayoshi, and find his current location. Same goes for all of you – we need an heir for the guardians of Vongola Decimo. We have four years from now – and Byakuran is going to turn eighteen. All the kids need to gather by then – and we'll raise a new Vongola."_

_Skull did rapid hand motions, trying to slow the explanation down. "Verde, we can think about this a little later – it's only been a few hours or so since Nono died. We have to think about making this current situation into an improving matter, not already thinking about abandoning the Vongola Famiglia that Nono has built until now, and placing all the burden and Tsunayoshi-"_

_Luce, who had been silent for the past few minutes, stood up, as if she had made up her mind. "No, Verde is right." Her voice cracked, as Reborn's eyes flickered in hesitation. _It's Luce, _He convinced himself – or at least, attempted. _It's not a stranger. It's Luce. _He stared at his beloved woman. _

_It wasn't her._

"Reborn?" Verde scowled. "Are you listening to me?"

The latter twitched, as he returned back to his consciousness. "What?" He murmured, as Verde shook his head.

"Never mind." He grumbled, and then went on to another topic evolving around Reborn. "What's with you and your daydreams nowadays? Off to Cloud nine or something?" Complaining in annoyed mannerisms, Verde stared at the battlefield, biting his bottom lip at the movement of the different guardians. "Geez, those damned Funeral Wraths… and Ghost and Byakuran isn't even on the field yet."

Reborn stared at the screen with dull eyes. "What are those mist flames? Our troops are being attacked too quick." Verde grumbled, as he tapped on different buttons to reactivate a stronger IB system. **(For those who forgot, it's an illusionary barrier for quick-battle defense.) **

"It seems like a new invention that Irie and Spanner had created behind my back. That fucking-" The lightning guardian held his breath back, and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I _mean_, that darned… Projector is just blocking our path." The man seemed to be recollecting his thoughts. "As you know Reborn, the Giglio Nero was never really that overpowering in general. You are aware of that, right? Well, the whole plan was supposed to go on without any much difficulty – but I didn't expect this to happen. What is Skull doing in Area 4? Geez, can't he take care of the situation when Kikyo is guarding _two_ Areas? That _idiot_." He spat, as he quickly changed the screens.

Reborn closed his eyes and pulled down his fedora. Skull – the only arcobaleno that actually went against the idea of creating a "New" Vongola. Reborn, who was simply bewildered by the sudden decisions at the time, couldn't care about the opinions of the cloud guardian much. _No – _Reborn thought, hot breath seeping out of gritted teeth as he exhaled heavily – _Just because it was Skull, I looked down on him. _We _looked down on him. No one listened to him. If someone did – if someone ever opened their ears and agreed and stood up for him – everything that was happening right now might've not happened at all._

Cries of the children. Tears of different people. Deaths of the innocent. _Why have I never tried to make a change to this? Because of the woman I love? All because of that woman is now making all the wrong choices, her eyes blinded with revenge?_

"_That's not Luce anymore," _His inner self echoed, beneath all the knots of confusion – as if to clear up the foggy mist.

"_It's just a devil in an angel's disguise." _

**MEANWHILE…**

"How do you think the adults are doing outside?" Yamamoto asked the rest, who were all crowded around one single room. The boy himself, Hibari, Ryohei, Mukuro, and Gokudera were getting prepared to go out to battle with the Black Spell members whenever they were called – an emergency, the adults called it.

Each of their "parents" (or rather, guardian) had taken care of their training for the past few days, and they have endured well. All they could actually do was handle their flames in a sense that it could actually hold some damage for their opponent – but they believed that was enough. Especially for Mukuro, Hibari, and Ryohei who had experience with battling elders.

"Rather unexpected, wasn't it?" The carefree, blithe boy went on. "I never knew those people would turn back as our enemy." Mukuro looked down, uncertain how to respond. Instead of him, Hibari spoke up. "You can understand why, actually." The boy glanced forth. "For them, Byakuran is the boy who had murdered the savior of their life. From Byakuran's perspective…" Hibari didn't go on. No – he couldn't go on. Staring at Tsuna, he furrowed his eyebrows and just growled lowly. "Nothing."

Gokudera tilted his head to the side. "What do you mean, savior?"

"The arcobaleno were basically… cursed people." Mukuro started to explain. He had stayed in the Millefiore long enough to gain knowledge about the eight. "Yes, they were known among the society of this "World" as the eight most powerful Mafioso – but at the same time, they were almost like an illuminating force that nobody could approach. More like, nobody except themselves, is the true case." Mukuro glanced at the kids who looked just about as close to being confused to confuddled. He quickly moved on. "It'll be good to hear the rest from Byakuran himself. I'm not much of an explainer, you see. Besides, we do need to concentrate on battle for now."

"That's true." Ryohei nodded in agreement, as he peeked out the small hole where they could see Area 4 (or at least as much as the amount the hole could present) with the adults fighting. "I think Alaude-san just defeated five more men at once." Tsuna, who was leaning next to Chrome silently in one corner, decided to speak.

"Ryohei nii-san?" His voice was squeaky, almost like an endangered mouse. The called boy simply turned around, his voice soft and warmer than he would usually talk.

"Yeah, Tsuna?"

The brunette bit his bottom lip in quite a pitiful manner. "Will we all need to fight against the bad people?" He was shivering. "Do we really need to fight Reborn ojii-san?" **(Meaning uncle in Japanese.)**

The older ones didn't respond. More like they couldn't. In truth, except Ryohei, Yamamoto, and Tsuna (possibly Hibari, though not as much) – they barely had any physical interaction with any of the Arcobaleno bunch – which meant they couldn't exactly be mentally connected to any of them. A battle was a battle, no matter whom they were against. Especially for Ryohei's case, who knew exactly what he had to do, right at this point.

But Tsuna wasn't them. Tsuna was still too young to even understand the concept of a proper and real adversary relationship – more or less learn the pain of death. All the little boy knew was fear – and so far, he had no one to hide behind to avoid that darkness. As a result, the boy was always easily intimidated – which was probably why when Reborn had found him, dying in the middle of the roads – it didn't matter to him who Reborn was. The fact that someone was holding him itself reassured the boy that it was safe.

"_Reborn is probably the first person Tsuna has ever felt warmth towards, after the death of his parents. Of course, the two didn't stay together very long, because Tsuna was moved to the orphanage after a few days or so – but nonetheless, for Tsuna it would've been a memorable experience." _Ryohei had reminded himself of what Yamamoto had informed him.

"Memorable experience, huh…" The boy mumbled to himself.

"_Welcome to the Millefiore Famiglia, Ryohei-kun."_

"_I don't think you're dirty."_

"_Hello, my name is Byakuran."_

He shrugged, as he closed his eyes and turned away from the hole.

**AREA 3…**

"Mind me asking something?" Bluebell narrowed her eyes at Spanner and Lampo. "Why are you guys here?" She glanced forth at Lambo who was standing in front of them. "Because of _that_ brat?" The female couldn't possibly understand the reason why two men were focusing so much on one single boy – that wasn't practically even himself anymore.

Spanner rolled his eyes. "And what does that have to do with you, mermaid?" Bluebell puffed up her cheeks at that, but didn't say anything. In truth, they were cornered. Lambo was releasing bolts of lightning from his horns that seemed to be attached through the wires that were connected to the nerve at his backbone – the spine.

"He's using a technique called _Corna Fulmine. _One wrong move, and you'll be pierced by the lightning bolt itself." Lampo explained, as Bianchi frowned.

"How do you know that well?"

Grunting, Lampo held up his gun, getting ready to defend himself. "Those are mine, that's why." _Putting that aside, why do they even have that weapon? Did they obtain it somehow? _As he gritted his teeth, Lampo dodged another green bolt. Spanner was staring at Lambo thoughtlessly (or so it seemed), as Bluebell and Bianchi remained, with Torikabuto deciding to exchange places Lampo and Spanner. That left four different individuals handling Lambo himself.

"I don't think this will be that challenging," Bluebell stuck her tongue out in boredom. Her cloak was flying in the air as she flew around. "It's just one boy, you know? We don't exactly need four people-"

"Shut up if you don't know anything." Spanner glared at her. "That AHA thing is dangerous just by the fact that it is planted in a human being. Its power comes from using the bone cells and blood cells of the human body, and forcefully converts it into dying will flames of the user. This eventually leads to death, if the Projection is overused, as the body will be at its limit and basically, worn out. But as a result from that, it multiplies the original power of the user by at least fifty times. Combining that with the Corna Fulmine itself is crazy."

Bluebell's expression hardened, as she gulped and glanced at the little boy that was standing in front of her, his eyes dull and blank, filled with no emotions. His hand moved forward, fingers twisting in an awkward direction. Green lightning flames burst upward, forming a gigantic dark cloud above them.

"Oh god." Bianchi mumbled. "Have some mercy."

"Think quick, everyone." Spanner mumbled. "Does anyone know how to make clouds disappear?"

"Go to Alaude." Lampo muttered under his breath, as he quickly processed through the weapons he held in his pockets. _Damn it… my shield isn't going to work against that… it's the exact same attack – it'll just worsen the situation. What to do… What to do…_ He quickly glanced around his surroundings, and his eyes widened at the discovery made. Pieces of metal swords flicking with flames were laying around the ground, along with the bodies of the Black Spell troops. "It's worth a try."

Picking up two of the swords, he shouted at the others to do the exact same. The other three, easily being able to notice what the plan was pretty easily. The black cloud above them rumbled, engulfed in lightning flames. Lambo held his arm high up in the air, and slashed it downward.

"_NOW_!"

Lampo threw the swords high up into the air, and they flew out in different directions. Thousands of lightning bolts changed direction and hit the swords, as it rattled in the air. Black smoke trailed out its way as they fell after a while, piercing the ground. The color was now black, and they transformed into a pile of ash after a matter of seconds.

A few lighting bolts that the swords didn't reach hit the ground, creating wide holes in the earth. "GET DOWN!" Spanner yelled, as they ducked, covering their heads. After a few explosions heard in their surroundings, the dark cloud diminished from the sky. Lambo coughed a pool of blood, his veins popping up on his skin very slightly, as his eyes widened.

"Lambo wouldn't be able to hold on for very long." Spanner clucked his tongue. "I need to remove the chip from his body before he actually dies from the blood loss."

"You knew how to do that?" Bluebell frowned, as she stared at the cliff that was quite nearby. "I honestly think it would be easier to just push the boy down over there and kill him, but alright." Lampo gave her a venomous glare, as she looked away, folding her arms, observing the condition of Lambo. "But you're right, he's not going to last a very long time. That attack just now wasted a lot of his energy, and probably used up most of the blood and bone cells to convert that much lightning flames."

"Simple, then." Bianchi tilted her head to the side. "We hold him back, and you remove the chip from his spine." She calculated the time that they would be able to keep Lambo to stop moving. "About two minutes, we can spare. Would that be enough?"

"More than enough." Spanner snorted, as he rolled his eyes.

"_Ne, Spanner-nii?" Lambo tugged on the older one's pants. _

_Taking out the lollipop from his mouth, Spanner sighed. "Lambo, I told you not to disturb me when I'm in my office, didn't I?" Looking helplessly into Lambo's moist eyes, Spanner took off his goggles and patted the boy's head, lifting him up from the ground and putting him on his lap. "What did you come for today?"_

_The little boy whispered something, and Spanner forced himself to lean in to listen. He put the screw down on the desk, and silently asked the boy to repeat. "Hide and seek…" He murmured. "You said you would play hide and seek with me today…"_

_Spanner grumbled inside his head. He had momentarily forgotten that he made such a promise. "Can we play some time else, Lambo? I'm busy right now." Lambo put on a simple pout, thumping his fists on Spanner's chest. _

"_You've been saying that for about 3 weeks, Spanner-nii. I'm bored."_

_Spanner continued to stare stressfully at the 5-year old boy. "Fine," He said. "But only for a little bit, ok?"_

That was their last hide-and-seek together. He smiled lightly at his little brother, who was standing in front of him, his eyes emotionless. "If I count till three, you guys will hold Lambo back, and I will remove the chip from his spine." They lowered their voice, and even the heaving of their breaths.

"One." _Click. _Lampo slowly took out his gun, as Lambo raised his arm.

"Two." _Poison cooking… _Bianchi silently mumbled, as Bluebell got ready to attack, using her box weapon.

"Three."

Pushing on the soil, dust flew everywhere as the four of them all ran towards the boy at once. Lightning flames flew in the form of lightning bolts at them, as the horns on the boy's head started to crack. The shield he was holding was slipping down from his hands, as Lambo lost his grip. Bianchi threw her poison cooking at the boy, which melted down and became a spider web that was holding him back.

Bluebell slammed her ring fiercely into her box, as sea shells wrapped in rain flames flew out, attaching themselves to Lambo, growing in size. Lampo, not exactly having a weapon to hold the back, pushed down on the web Bianchi had summoned and did his best to stop the boy from raising his arm further for the next attack. "SPANNER!"

"I know, I know." Spanner mumbled, quickly using a syringe to nullify the pain on the boy's neck. He then used his pocketknife to split open the skin in the very slightest, enough to remove the chip. _Damn… This is hard to see… _He winced at the sight of thumping flesh and trickling blood. He yanked on his goggles, biting his bottom lip.

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

"What's that noise…" Spanner grumbled, as he used the zoom in option he had programmed into his goggles. Slightly opening the bloody wound, Spanner's eyes widened at the sight that folded out in front of him.

There was a miniature bomb that was attached to the chip. _It probably explodes as soon as I take it out… wait, no. _Spanner frowned, as he saw the number five blinking on the chip. _An indication of five seconds… _He gulped. _If I throw it… no, the explosion would endanger us all if I throw it this nearby. Five seconds… what can I do in five seconds…_

The cliff.

Spanner stared at it for a second, which seemed like an hour.

"What are you doing? These box weapons won't last forever, you know." Bluebell clucked her tongue, as she gritted her teeth and smeared the rain flames around her seashells. "Seriously, you're a fucking slowpoke."

"Yeah." Spanner mumbled, as he pushed his fingers in and wrapped them around the edge of the chip. The number stopped blinking, shining of neon green. Lambo's eyes were dull as ever, though he stopped moving his arm upward. "I'm working on it." He pulled the chip out, as Bianchi started to take away her web. Lampo frowned as he saw Spanner shaking in the very slightest. _What's wrong with him?_

Spanner stopped halfway, and looked into Lampo's light green orbs. "Hey, Mister Bovino."

"We're both from the Bovino Famiglia, just saying." Lampo mumbled. "And I seriously am having a hard time here, so hurry up in taking out that chip."

"Mind telling Lambo that I'm sorry that I can't hide and seek with him anymore?" He smiled smugly, as Lampo scowled.

"Hey-"

Spanner yanked out the chip, as the lightning flames emitting from Lambo's body disappeared in an instant, as the boy fell forward. He ran towards the cliff, faster than he ever had in his whole life, his body almost feeling like it was flying in mid air. The number on the chip changed to four, blinking red.

_I should've talked to you a little more, Lambo._

"Spanner?!" Bianchi yelled, as she started running after him. Bluebell pulled her backward harshly, as Bianchi glared at her angrily. "What are you doing?! Spanner is-"

"He's doing it for our sake." Bluebell mumbled under her breath. "You'll die if you go any nearer than that."

Blinking red again, the number changed into three.

_I won't be there when you wake up, but it's alright._

The inventor leapt down the cliff, falling on his back. The sky was turning gray, covered with smoke from different explosions and dynamites and dark clouds forming at the very top. His half-lidded eyes closed, as he started to let go of the chip that now changed to another digit.

_Just think of it is as a long hide and seek that we'll be doing._

Lampo just looked emptily at the cliff, as he picked Lambo up, who was lying limply on the ground. He turned away, as he grasped the little boy tightly in his arms. Trembling, he gritted his teeth – as the number changed to one.

_Tick._

_I love you, Lambo._

A loud burst of orange flew up and loomed over the three left on the land.

It was the start of the two brother's long hide and seek.

**End of Chapter.**

… **Hello. **

**Some of you guys might've expected it – but yes, Spanner was bound to die. It's a start of Lambo and Spanner's long hide and seek…**

**Replies!**

**Arthur Moebius – I don't know… was it cliché? I guess someone dying is cliché.**

**Pippalina – Area 2 and 4 are supposed to be connected, which is why Kikyo is in both of them.**

**Pipe Dream – Yes, the pace is very fast at times. The reason that I didn't really include the reactions of kids to the betrayal of the Arcobaleno is because some of the kids never really had any interaction with them. It is true I moved across the training part too quickly, though – I would try to fix that, because this battle isn't actually the final battle.**

**Baloogablue – Hm… would Reborn ever change sides? I don't know…**

**Regality – Thank you, it's rare that anyone ever calls me a genius.**

**Natsu Yuuki – Thank you very much for your support. I am actually working on this story harder than ever, so I'd be glad if you read it till the very end.**

**Until my next update,**

**Meiko**


	19. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

"Byakuran-sama?"

"…Yes?"

"I… lost signal of Spanner." Irie said bitterly. He wasn't stuttering, nor whispering in fear. His voice was clear, but almost heavy – as if he was saying much more than he actually was. "An explosion happened near the cliff. I… am not sure if Spanner survived that."

Byakuran didn't respond. Daemon frowned, as he glanced at the clock. His time for keeping up the Projector was almost over. "Why didn't he throw the bomb down the cliff? He would've lived."

"Spanner probably knew that if he threw it before the five seconds was over, the explosion would've destroyed the weak edge of the cliff, and he would've fallen and died anyways. Any other way, Spanner was fated to die like that." Irie muttered, as Byakuran turned in his chair and stared at the screen.

"Daemon," He called out, as the illusionist turned around and gave a sullen face at the boss, continuing the plunge in the waves of mist flames into the machine. "It's your turn. Switch turns with Nagi-chan." As if on queue, Chrome entered with Elena. Daemon glanced worriedly at the girl, but paused as he saw the nervous yet certain light in the girl's eyes. He slowly lifted his hands at that, as it was replaced by Chrome's small and frail ones.

Stepping forward, there was Elena. "Daemon, dear." She reached for the pale cheeks of Daemon, who smiled and gave her a tight hug in response. The two remained like that for a while, as if to communicate a message through their embrace. "Please," She whispered. "Promise to return." The illusionist simply shrugged.

"Doesn't sound like a very a challenging promise, hon." With that the mist guardian turned his back on his lover and left, not giving her a second glance. Staring at his broad back, Elena just closed her eyes, and then went to examine Chrome. The girl herself was actually doing pretty well. Mist flames had calmly been sent into the Projector, almost exactly as how Daemon managed to do it. Elena let out a sigh relief and sat down on the floor.

_How long Nagi would be able to hold that off would be the second possible turning point of this battle. _Elena thought, tapping her finger on the floor. _The first would be whether all the power of the different Areas will be guarded proportionally even with the loss of Spanner-san. _"We lost an inventor…" She was muttering, trying to consider all the tactics that could even become a smallest option in their current situation.

"What's she mumbling about, Byakuran-sama?" Irie frowned. "I understand that she must be nervous, but I think I've never seen someone that agitated."

Byakuran just smirked, and shook his head, his hair waving in midair. "She isn't nervous, or agitated." He picked up a mallow and pushed it into his mouth. "You know, Sho-chan, this isn't recorded in any of the books or private files about the information of the first generation, but there is actually a rumor about Elena – the Vongola Tactician. She was known to be a legendary female fighting force in the Vongola… but I was certain they were just bluffing."

"Tactician?" Irie just frowned, "She doesn't seem like one, though."

"Who knows?" Shrugging his shoulders, Byakuran turned away and faced the screen again. "Now that we are missing Spanner, we'll need to think of some other way to fill in his gap…" Irie just tapped on the keyboard silently, as his spectacles shined.

Hesitating very slightly, he started. "Byakuran-sama, is Spanner… really dead?"

Byakuran just closed his eyes. "Who knows."

Irie pursed his lips close and simply turned around, fixing the position of his glasses and focusing on the giant screen again. The battle seemed to be reaching its end – the Arcobaleno didn't seem to be showing themselves, in which Byakuran explained that it was properly to not carelessly injure their bodies, for they didn't know what could possibly happen in the final battle.

"That's a shame," Irie furrowed his eyebrows. "It would be easier for us if we see the end of at least one of them." Nodding in agreement, Byakuran stared at the corner of the screen, where their camera was the closest to showing the edges of the Arcobaleno base.

He squinted his eyes at that particular box, and then opened his mouth to speak up. "Sho-chan, would you please zoom into box 7?" Irie followed the orders, and soon the whole screen was consumed with box 7's scenery. The spectacled male frowned, as he spotted something odd. "Isn't that Skull? Why would he be back to the base? I thought he was somewhere near Area 2 or 4, where Kikyo was…" Irie then glanced at Byakuran to seek the answer. The boss seemed to be interpreting the situation himself.

"No, Skull isn't 'back' to the base…" Byakuran stood up, as he pushed Irie out of the control boards, and zoomed into another box. "Look, there is Skull over here, too." He pointed at the box where Skull was behind a tree trunk, sitting down, cautiously inspecting the battle. "It's hard to spot him, but the one in box 23 is probably the fake Skull, and the one in Box 7 is real."

"How would you know?" Elena was next to the boss, also scowling in confusion. Byakuran looked down and closed his eyes, as if to be clearing up his mind and coming forth to a suitable conclusion.

Finally, the male started to talk. "I am assuming that the plan of the Arcobaleno was to only send out Skull for further inspection on the battle, as the cameras could possibly miss out scenes that they aren't aware of, in case of the angles. Of course, Verde is there so such a mistake would be close to impossible, but at the same time, Verde is a perfectionist. He probably didn't want to miss out a single thing. And where the fake Skull is right now, is supposedly the angle that they cannot catch, which is why they placed him there. But if you see in Box 7, who is presumably the real Skull, is nearby the base- actually, he just went in. Which only means that Skull isn't obeying the orders of the one in authority – Luce."

"Is it betrayal?" Elena questioned, as Byakuran shook his head.

"I'm not sure. But even if he really did betray the Arcobaleno, I can't exactly say certainly that he is on our side, either." Pinching the bridge of his nose, Byakuran heaved a sigh. Elena then raised her eyebrow, as she glanced sideways at Chrome who was sweating a little, inserting her mist flames at the highest rate. Then she turned back to face Byakuran.

"Hey…" She started off, "But Skull can't use mist flames, can he? How did he create a clone?" Irie's eyes widened, and then shook Byakuran's shoulders.

"That's right, Byakuran-sama! We missed the easiest point – Skull couldn't be doing this on his own! There is definitely someone cooperating with him to make their particular plan success!" Something seemed to click in Byakuran's mind, as he rapidly typed on the keyboard of the controller, as he moved back about ten minutes back into Box 23 and the other boxes.

His eyes scanning the gigantic screen, he whispered to himself. "There's only one…" He mumbled. "Sho-chan, remind me, what Area was Daemon transferred to?" Irie quickly shoveled through his record book to look up all the names of the Funeral Wraths and Vongola guardians.

"Area 2, Byakuran-sama."

The white-haired male swiftly turned back to the screen, as he clicked on a few more buttons. "As I expected… Box 23 is closer towards Area 2." The screen displayed a map, showing all the cameras placed over the battlefield."

Elena frowned, as she folded her arms across her chest. "And what does that indicate about my darling?"

"Listen," Byakuran started talking quite excitedly. "The time Daemon exited this office was about ten minutes ago. The camera over here at the same time, in Box 23, is probably when the real Skull was actually performing his task. But then if you turn the camera to about two minutes later, there are two Skulls on the screen, though it is very challenging to catch an unwavering image of him. This means the one in Box 23 is a fake – an illusion created by Daemon."

"You might want to elaborate on that explanation." Elena spoke, as Byakuran continued, after inhaling a deep breath.

"The Arcobaleno would've actually realized it earlier than us if they were to have spot Skull on their own screen. But from this, they aren't making any particular action. Which means that the locations of our cameras were done purposely for us to notice that Skull was on our side. Furthermore, if you actually remember… the ones that placed the cameras were Sho-chan, Spanner, G, and Daemon – and you four only."

Suddenly, an exhausted pant was heard from behind the three adults. Elena was the first to turn back in worry, as she saw Chrome covered with cold sweat, her stomach almost dangerously caved in. It wasn't because that Daemon had released his organ illusions on her, but because she was unintentionally using the mist flames inside her body to make up for the decreasing amount of mist flames that she was inserting into the machine.

"Byakuran, she isn't going to make it." Elena urged, as Byakuran gritted his teeth.

Suddenly, an evident change was seen on the battlefield. The image of the soldiers was more clearly seen on the camera, and more red dots were appearing on their map that was connected with the flame detector outdoors. Irie ran towards the control center, as Byakuran made way for his subordinate.

Irie gulped, as he turned back to make his report.

"The IB system has turned off."

**MEANWHILE…**

"What do you think you're doing?"

An accusing growl echoed throughout the underground base of the Arcobaleno. Verde, Reborn, and Skull were standing around the dashboard of the main system that was supposed to be constructed in a sense that it could look over the whole battlefield. Now those lay on the ground, destroyed in a single second.

"What does it look like, Mr. Mad Scientist?" Skull tilted his head to the side, as if to make a rather rhetorical statement with his whole body. "This place is now useless."

"I didn't locate you on any of the cameras."

The cloud Arcobaleno snorted, shrugging his shoulders. "Obviously," He said as he licked the edge of his thumb, caressing the damaged compartments of the IB system's main body. "The camera angles that I set up were put in an angle so that you wouldn't be able to see me come back."

Placing his hands lazily into his pockets, Verde spoke up. "I can't imagine you planning this through alone." Reborn managed to keep a cool composure, as he lighted a cigarette. "I am guessing there was support from the other side?" Skull seemed to debate on the answer to the question within himself.

"Well…" He started off, blowing away the smoke that was in his face. "More like a deal. You don't need to know." Skull paused, as he grinned proudly at the black screen that was the only remaining light source of the room – now making the room pitch black. The scent of Reborn's cigarette hit Skull's nose, as the biker just stepped backward. "I was always against all of your methods, after all. Never impressed me, I swear."

Silence erupted in the room, as Verde folded his arms. "I thought we went over this matter four years ago. I can't believe that you still have a grudge over the fact that we had brought down the original format of the Vongola created by Nono-"

"It's not that." Skull heaved a sigh, as he tried to stand back up without tripping over the burnt metal in the darkness. "All of you are still stuck in that time period – late summer, four years ago – when Nono passed away." Tapping his newly done piercing that was on his eyebrow; the male reached forward and pushed the broken pieces of the IB system out of his way. "It's not like I moved on completely either. But I don't think it's right to seek revenge using this particular method."

"_Revenge_?" Verde snorted. "Moving on? Look Skull, I think you've got this wrong – this isn't revenge; it's a new sense of justice that even Nono would be proud –"

"Hey, Verde." The cloud Arcobaleno interrupted. "Have you ever kept count of how many people we have sacrificed to earn this so called justice?" The lightning Arcobaleno paused for a second, and then responded.

"No. But without sacrifice –"

"Without _human_ sacrifice, you mean." Sighing heavily, Skull ran his fingers through his hair. "Why would human sacrifice be necessary in the first place if this justice you are aiming for is for _them_? You speak of contradicting reasons, Verde." As if captivated in the black vicinity, Verde kept his silence as he blended in with his surroundings. A run down base, and the lightning Arcobaleno. It seemed to match.

Blowing on the ash piled on the floor, Skull continued. "You know, I planted a bomb in this base. It'll explode in a few minutes or so."

"Why bothered to tell us now? Change of minds?" Reborn tilted his head to the side, finally feeling the urge to speak up. The purple-haired male laughed slightly, tipping over the pile of rocks on the floor, as they fell over. "I thought you had a cooperator on the other team."

Skull shook his head, until he noticed that the other two wouldn't be able to see his reaction. "No, it's not really like that." Slumping down on the cold surface, Skull rubbed his fingers on the rough ground. "It was nothing like me helping them. We just decided to… well, assist each other for our own purposes. My unnamed cooperator needed something for his side, and I wanted to burn this base down along with the last IB system we had remaining."

"You do know by doing this, you are giving more of an advantage to that side?" Verde twitched, as Skull leaned back on the wall. "Well, that must be your whole point, but even so. If that's what you wanted to do, then why tell us that there is a bomb going off in a few minutes – seconds, or whatever?"

"It's okay, you still have 8 minutes if you want to escape." Skull replied quietly, sticking a lollipop in his mouth. Nothing but the sound of silent buzzes from the malfunctioning computer was heard, as the three males aware of one another's presence stood around awkwardly in odd tension. The first one to speak again was Verde.

"Well then," The man stuffed his laptop into his suitcase, along with a bottle of liquor he had saved for later, after the battle. "I will take my leave. You two can rot here, for all I care." He grumbled, as he kicked the black stones out of his way. On his way out, he slammed the folded door behind him in frustration, and soon the room was only occupied with Reborn and Skull.

Exhaling smoke, Reborn licked his lips. "Were you planning for this, ever since that day?" The latter relaxed his chin on top of his knee, bringing his right leg closer to his chest. He seemed to put some thought into his response before speaking of it.

"To be honest, no." He brushed his thumb against his chin. "I wasn't much in the kind of condition to think about what was right or wrong. I think I knew what I was supposed to do, but I just couldn't get myself to move and actually put it into action. It took me a year to realize, after I counted all those people I murdered, including children, adults… that a transformation to this method was essential."

"And this is the change you're making? Killing yourself, and destroying one of our key weapons, just to give the smallest advantage to the other side?" Reborn questioned, though it wasn't very demanding. He wondered why.

Chuckling, Skull just scratched the back of his head. "It's not much of an advantage. At least I let both of your survive. And besides," He looked up and gazed at something that seemed to be past that dark side. Almost like an illusion of their past, standing around Nono, their eternal savior. "I know you're just like me, Reborn."

The sun Arcobaleno squeezed the cigarette he was smoking between his index and middle fingers. "I am curious what makes you say that with such certainty."

"Luce's not like how she used to be. She's a changed person. You should've realized that long ago – when she agreed to Verde's idea to this new Vongola, or whatever. We're all different now – and there seems to be few that notice." Reborn just inhaled a deep breath at this statement, as he stepped on the cigarette after dropping it to the floor. He usually wouldn't litter around, but he cared less about a building that was about to explode.

"Are you hoping they fall to their knees and eventually collapse, Skull?" Reborn wasn't speaking in a manner that 'they' referred to Byakuran and the Vongola – but 'they' as in his Arcobaleno companions – as if they weren't associated with one another in the slightest.

Putting his hands in his pockets, Skull put on a sullen expression. "No, I am not particularly on any side. I don't want to be on the Vongola's side because then I would have to be against you guys, but then I didn't want to be here because then I would be fighting alongside you guys. Which is why I decided that I could be of some help to… this battle itself. This explosion will kill no one but me."

"Why are you so eager to kill yourself?" Reborn asked in confusion, though he didn't feel much sympathy for the latter – presumably because they weren't really on good terms to start with. "Is it really worth it?"

"No one wants to die, Reborn." Skull muttered under his breath. "But you know, there are always exceptions. Especially when you know what really happened to Byakuran… wait, do you know?" He raised an eyebrow, as Reborn kept his mouth shut. "I see. I'll take that as a no. Well then, that's your task to find out. Now, if you will leave me in peace – there are about fifty seconds until the bomb goes off."

Reborn stared at where he supposed Skull was sitting down. He stepped forward and walked towards the exit, and reached for the doorknob and pushed the creaky door open. Before leaving, he glanced at Skull who had his eyes closed. "Tell Nono and Iemitsu I said hi, if you meet them, will you?"

The cloud Arcobaleno smirked, as he nodded in approval. "Very well, I will do so."

_**~Mending Hearts~**_

"Byakuran-sama, I just received a report that the last of the troops from the Black Spell were exterminated. And also that the base of the Arcobaleno exploded a few seconds ago… with Skull still remaining inside." Irie turned towards Byakuran, who just stretched his arms, tending for Chrome's physical condition, making her eat a mist flame pill that automatically fixed the fading organs inside her. Elena put a blanket over the girl, and let out a sigh of relief.

"He should be dead then. Good for us, but it makes me feel guilty that I can't repay him for his gratitude." Byakuran blew on his marshmallow, as it wavered back and forth on his finger. "It was a good thing that none of the Arcobalenos except from those three were present on the battlefield – or else we might've lost against them."

The door crashed open, showing the different guardians including the first generation. Lampo, Bluebell, and Bianchi weren't very bright about the fact that they won after Spanner's confirmed death, as they couldn't locate his body at all. They had assumed he had burnt away into pieces, being so close to the explosion.

"Well fought, all of you. I appreciate your hard work." Byakuran gave a thankful nod, as he then paused for quite a while, observing the situation and wondering what to say first. "I will start with the bad news I have. As all of you might've noticed – Spanner isn't here anymore. We have to recognize everything he has done for us until now – and how until the end, he didn't hold back to protect his brother and his comrades." The boss himself sounded despondent – the quavering that could be heard inaudibly between his breathing was much to be identified as frustration – or depression.

"But we do have some good news, to look at the bright side." He looked up again, a small smile plastered on his face. "Of course, Daemon Spade seemed to not have informed anyone about this matter, but… apparently Skull and him had a connection going on during battle. Skull, just a few minutes ago – had bombed the Arcobaleno base and committed suicide." Byakuran popped a marshmallow into his mouth. "This gives us an advantage in number – as the Arcobaleno would probably have trump cards close to nothing. Their last IB system has been damaged, and with only seven of them remaining, with a few men from the Black Spell – this clearly gives us an advantage now. The final battle would be easier to deal with."

"Sounds promising." Knuckle nodded. "Speaking of which, where are the kids right now? I want to see them."

"They are at the room downstairs, where it is closest to the emergency exit."

The adults exited the office with that, leaving the Funeral Wraths and Byakuran alone with Irie and Bianchi. Elena also stood up, as she passed on Chrome into Daemon's arms. "Is she alright?" The male illusionist whispered, as Elena shook her head.

"She was at a dangerous moment when she was about fifteen minutes through – but I think that's when Skull-san destroyed the IB system, because we didn't need the Projector afterwards. Her stomach was caved in since she used the mist flames to charge up the amount she lacked – which led her to this, but Byakuran tended to her afterwards."

"I see." Daemon nodded. "I owe him one."

"But man, that was pretty intense." Knuckle said, as he cracked his neck. "I never had a fight like that in a while, to be honest. As a matter of fact, my backbone is starting to ache after all those leaning in and punches and kicks." G clucked his tongue in agreement, rolling his shoulders as he moved his arm in a small circular motion.

Giotto then glanced worriedly at Lambo, who was yet to be treated his injuries to the fullest. Bruises and scratches were evident and visible on the boy's body, as Lambo held him carefully, as if he was about to break in half if he didn't do so. "Is Lambo okay? He seemed to be having it rough on the field when I heard through the reports last time."

"What?" Lampo blinked, awakened from his daydream. "Oh. Right. Uh, yeah – pretty much. If Spanner didn't know how to remove the bomb, then we would've been in much more trouble than this. But… yeah." Lambo quickly ended, as he turned away and went down the steps.

As they opened the door to the room, the kids ran towards them and slammed themselves into the exhausted bodies of the adults – well, except for some, like Mukuro, Kyoya, and Hayato. They simply walked towards the guardians, receiving a caring pat on their heads, or a punishing squeeze on the cheek.

"How was the battle? Did you win?" Ryohei asked excitedly, as Knuckle laughed, just to encourage the boy. The two stepped out of the room holding hands, as the elder explained about the victoriously fought war.

Each kid went off with their respective parent, as if it was natural and soaked into their habitual patterns. Tsuna and Giotto chattered off excitedly to one another in their room, as the little boy waited for Giotto to talk about something else. The blonde seemed troubled, as he put the brunette on his lap.

"Tsuna, what do you remember about your parents?" The man asked after putting some thought into it. "Like the vaguest thing you can make out included."

"What does vague mean?"

"Doesn't matter. What were they like?"

"Mm…" The little boy put his chubby and small index finger on his bottom lip. "Papa was nice. He used to talk about me having a brother a lot of times. And Mama was nice too. I liked her a lot, before she died. She was good at cooking."

"I see." Giotto caressed the boy's hair, as he laid him down on the bed and put the blanket over him.

Tsuna's eyes started to close, as he held onto Giotto's hand. "I don't mind Giotto being my new Papa, though. Giotto is very nice too." The blonde's eyes widened in surprise. The brunette rarely showed much affection to him in the sense that he accepted Giotto in a parental manner.

"Good night, Tsuna."

**End of Chapter.**

**I think a clarification might be needed for Skull's death. The reason Skull died, for those who didn't quite comprehend the conversation of the three Arcobalenos up there in the text, Skull was too nervous to make an actual to the Arcobaleno – so he decides to just give himself up during the battle. He cooperates with Daemon to destroy the IB system (that cannot be recreated without the support of Spanner, as he is the only one that knows how the final structure needs to look like) and bomb the base. Skull wasn't on anyone's side till the very end – as he said, "I don't want to fight against you guys, but not alongside either."**

**The reason why the other five Arcobalenos were missing was due to the fact that the main base was left bare, unprotected. As a result, they only send out three Arcobalenos to battle. This is proven to be fatal mistake they had made, for if there was Mammon, they could've probably prevented the association of Daemon and Skull happening.**

**Now to the replies!**

**Arthur Moebius – It is unfortunate to hear that Spanner was your favorite character. But even if Spanner had threw it down the cliff he would've died, so I just decided to make it more dramatic. And cliché. Yeah.**

**Lacie – it really depends on perspective of who the "bad guy" is, whether it is the Arcobaleno as whole, or Luce alone.**

**Guest – Yeah, feels trip was a success!**

**Pippalina – I'm sorry I took away Spanner from all of you.**

**Pipe Dream – Yeah, it IS rarely mentioned in my story that Tsuna is the second youngest among the kids in my story. Yes, it does cast things in a different light, now if I think about it.**

**Baloogablue – Hm, who knows if Reborn is evil, or is actually changing…**

**Regality – I'm trying to find a way how to respond to "You're very welcome!". Hm… just give me a second. Thanks for the review, anyhow.**

**Natsu Yuuki – Being called Meiko-san from somebody is weird, now that I think about it. Thanks for following through my story.**

**Guest – Wow, 4 times? Even I don't do that, being the author of this story myself. I appreciate your compliments very much, thank you! Though I'm not a genius, I do try to be like one.**

**SerinasHarmony – I'm sorry that was supposed to be a feels trip. And congratulations for being the 150****th**** reviewer!**

**Until my next update,**

**Meiko**


	20. Chapter 18

**Okay. Wow – it's June. What the heck was I doing, leaving this story for six months? Sorry for letting you down, guys. I really apologize for continuously leaving this story on an uncertain hiatus. I feel like I suck at continuing extensive stories like this. But here it is – the update of Mending Hearts.**

**The end is near.**

**Chapter 18 **

_The female always thought – that if the whole world was refusing to think like her, then she might as well prove herself correct._

_"… Luce, who have you become now?"_

Skull had asked that question exactly forty-six days ago. _Who_? She laughed at that one. _Now_? She laughed one more time at that one, too. She was Luce, the Sky Arcobaleno. She was the heavenly, divine Sky that guarded the Vongola she was trying to construct.

She wanted to create a perfect world. Imperfect wouldn't be able to exist in the world that she dwelled in. Perfect happiness – pursue of humans to their own haven. She was going to become their angel.

_"Luce, you're like an angel." Timoteo placed young Luce on his lap and poked her cheek with his index finger. Luce blinked, and stared up at the elderly male._

_"Angel?"_

_"Yes… like the guardian angel from heaven. You can be everyone's angel, Luce. _

Everyone's angel. She liked how the two words rolled off her tongue. She reached out to the poor and unwanted. She treated everyone equally, and with the same amount of kindness and generosity. She sought for tranquility and peace, and for placidity in the world to be kept in harmony. And that was why she couldn't stop. To grant Timoteo's wish… She had to become everyone's angel.

She despised Byakuran from the bottom of her heart for such reasons. He was a demon. He killed his own father, and his foster father – both that were very dearly to Luce. She couldn't become his angel. Luce sighed in distress as she reminded of her conversation with Reborn just a few minutes ago in her office.

_"What is it, Reborn?" _

_Pain. That was what she saw in the male's eyes. "Skull died. He betrayed us."_

_"Well, that's perfidious of him." Luce scowled, linking her hands. "We have no need for an Arcobaleno that can't fulfill his needs." _

_"… Luce, is that really what you think?" Reborn had a look of disbelief in his eyes. Luce tilted her head to the side._

_"Why wouldn't I think so? Some casualties are necessary to bring perfection to this messed up society. I thought we went over this as a whole group, Reborn. I expected you to understand my true goals –" _

_"I understood, alright." Reborn muttered. "I never said I agreed, though." _

_Luce clenched her hands together. Why? Why was Reborn acting like this, as well? "Reborn, we –" _

_"Let's not use that 'we' when you and I address each other, Luce." Mumbling with nothing but bitterness – or maybe if you looked close enough, a tinge of guilt – Reborn looked away. "It's not necessary anymore." _

_Her heart ached. Not Reborn. "Reborn, I just really want to build a world where everyone can be at peace. You know that I only desire for a bright future, and nothing else –"_

_"The only thing I ever wanted, Luce," Reborn said with a strained voice, "was to find happiness with _you_. You… and me. Perfection is impossible in this world, Luce, you know that." His tone had now faltered. Luce pursed her lips at that. His angel. That's what she used to aim for. _

_"I'll prove the impossible –"_

_"True happiness doesn't require the sacrifice of a life, Luce. You know that." Retorting quickly, Reborn spoke for himself. Luce looked dissatisfied, as Reborn curtly turned away and glanced at her before exiting the room. _

_"I really did love you, Luce." _

Love. That was right. The two had once loved each other. They had promised each other something like that… marriage, children… their dream.

She didn't know what she was doing wrong. The fact that she had used the kids to achieve her goals? The fact that she would continue to use people in order to fulfill her true motive? If one did not have a clear vision for what was to happen, then Luce believed that they shouldn't even begin the process in the first place. She knew what she had to do. So why was everyone being in her way?

Releasing a light sigh, Luce tapped her desk impatiently. Unimportant. Yes – it was all unimportant and inconsequential. All that mattered was the future, not the present that was troubling her or the past that used to be her haven. She had to find her happiness – and the happiness where everyone could live together.

Yes. That was what she had to do.

Suddenly, she reminded herself of a certain plan suggested by one of her comrades long ago. The words sparked into her mind, and Luce smiled.

Maybe, the kids could still prove some use for her.

**MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE MILLEFIORE BASE… **

"The final battle." Giotto repeated what Byakuran said. "So it's finally ending…"

"Hopefully assuming that you people all make it out alive here and make it to the past, that is." The young boss of the Millefiore nodded. "Only seven of the arcobalenos remain – we can do this. We have more than a thousand on this side, and they possess merely 500 men due to their casualties from their previous battle. I still have the power of my Funeral Wraths… Oh, and my yet to be introduced clone, but you know, the best for the last." He smiled viciously, as he conversed with the first generation in a quite leisure manner considering the fact that this was supposedly their final battle.

"They have the arcobaleno pacifiers though." G pointed out. "I'm pretty sure those are capable of doing something."

"Technically. But since Skull died, the cloud pacifier lost its effect. And I doubt that they'd be able to use that anyway… I suggested a game, you know."

"What, the Choice?" Irie questioned. "Because that's not my favorite game."

Byakuran chuckled. "No. It's simpler – and fairer than Choice. It's called King."

"Well, that surely sounds like the definition of simple." Lampo rolled his eyes, making a sarcastic hand motion for it to go long with his words.

"Each team will have on King – as well as the Queen, the Jack, and the Ace. To be simply said, the King is worth 4 points, the Queen is worth 3 points, and the Jack 2 points – you get my point. The team that has the most points at the end of 3 hours wins the game." Byakuran explained.

"Is that it?" Giotto tilted his head to the side.

"Of course not." The Millefiore's boss said nonchalantly. "There is an additional role – the Joker. The Joker is like a turnover of the game; they are worth 10 points. So even if you can't catch the King and Queen and whatever, if you catch the Joker of the other team, you can instantly be capable of making a comeback."

"So the maximum amount of points you can gain in 3 hours is 20 points." Daemon concluded, as Byakuran nodded.

"That's right. The ones without a particular role – their job is to guard their five important people. It is not a good idea to protect the Joker so much, though – it'd be evident who the Joker is."

Humming a little, Asari spoke. "That means it'd be good to choose the five strongest people on the team."

"Well, yes. It'd be easier that way, for certain."

"Then it's decided." G slammed his palm on the round table to gather attention. "The King is Giotto."

Raising his hand up, Daemon opened his mouth. "I volunteer Alaude as tribute for the position of the Queen." The cloud guardian whipped his gaze towards the mist guardian, who just sneered back at him. But surprisingly, Alaude didn't seem to have many complaints with the suggestion – if he had a high rank that meant more enemies would come after him, which meant he got to kill more people. Fair deal.

"Kikyo from the Millefiore will go for our Jack, then." Byakuran gestured at his cloud guardian. "And I guess Zakuro can be the Ace."

"Now it's a matter for the Joker…" Knuckle rubbed his chin.

"I'll be the Joker." Byakuran grinned. "Expected, but I'm quite reliable. Does anyone have any other comments to add to this decision?"

The room was silent, and Byakuran took that as a no. "Well, I'll clarify our roles then. King, Giotto, Queen, Alaude, Jack, Kikyo, Ace, Zakuro, and Joker, me."

Nobody said anything, as Byakuran beamed and exited the room, satisfied. Irie rushed out accompanying him, as he panted, trying to catch up. "Byakuran-sama, I think you forgot to mention an important rule about the Joker on both teams –"

Byakuran shook his head as he put his index finger to his lips, shushing the latter. Irie Shoichi frowned. "Byakuran-sama, don't tell me you're planning to –"

"Sho-chan." Byakuran averted his gaze elsewhere. "Let's not talk further about this matter."

"However, Byakuran-sama, this is a fatal decision for the Famiglia. The Millefiore has to think of a way –"

"Irie Shoichi." The said male flinched. "I think you said enough."

"… Alright, Byakuran-sama."

As the two dismissed themselves, the eight remaining adults sat in a circle of frustration. None of them knew how to start a conversation, or even what to talk about, assuming a conversation would even begin.

"So…" Elena, not able to stand the silence, broke the glass. "What do you think would happen after this?"

"I hope the children come back with us, to our time." Asari admitted. "I believe that if we work together, we can… make them experience great things. I bet those kids never even went to a decent vacation before."

"I can show them around prison." Alaude sounded oddly enthusiastic when he suggested that idea.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Daemon shook his head. "Please. That's like, the last place I want my children to go to a field trip on."

"That's because you're a herbivore." Alaude scoffed. "Prison is a perfectly decent location to take your children to."

"Yeah, and freak them out? You can take your son there, but not mine." Lampo rolled his eyes, throwing his arms into the air. Then they all momentarily paused, realizing that they had called the children as if they were actually their children. It was beginning to sound odd on the tongue if they stated the kids as if they weren't related to them at all. A family. That was what they were.

"We have to take them back home." Giotto intoned. "Our home, where they truly belong."

"Assuming we make it out of that King game or whatever alive, yeah." G grunted, gaining some dissatisfactory looks from the guardians. "What? You guys all are aware of the fact that some will probably die in that game. And haven't you ever considered what would occur in this world if we take those children to our time period? This world will be completely destroyed – because we're not supposed to take them to our time. We're changing the future. You need to recognize how crucial this is –"

"Even so," Interrupted Lampo, "I want to take Lambo back home. I know you took a liking to Hayato as well, whether you like it or not."

G put on an expression that showed a mixture of anger, stubbornness, and finally admittance. He indeed did enjoy the presence of Hayato. He casually had gotten used to the fact that the boy was from his bloodline, and was capable of being his son. He loved the gray-haired brat, no matter how hard he would try to deny it. That's why he had to make it out alive through this final battle. For the sake of the children.

"Let God do his work." Knuckle closed his eyes, and sat back on the chair. "Just go with His flow, and everything will go well."

That's what all of them hoped.

**BACK IN THE ROOMS… **

"So, you're fighting tomorrow?"

"Apparently. I'm not up for this shit, but I sure do want to go back home." G grumbled, as he sat on his bouncy mattress with Hayato. The boy glanced warily up at the adult, and remembered the times where he had cussed at him, kicked him, and insulted him whenever he had the perfect chance. He didn't trust G. He couldn't trust G. But now when he was with the red head, he was at ease. An invisible bond existed between the two of them, and Hayato knew. G knew, as well.

"Good luck with those bastards, then." Hayato mumbled, as he put the sheets over his head. G blinked. That was about as far as Hayato would go to make a reassuring comment.

"Yeah. Thanks, Hayato." He ruffled the boy's hair, and fell asleep, hoping he would be able to sleep in his own bed with the boy the next night.

_~MH~ _

Asari Ugetsu just sat there for a while, searching for his inner peace. Despite being the rain guardian that was supposed the represent tranquility and all, he just couldn't stay relaxed. So much was going to happen tomorrow. Battle, blood, more killing, more deaths, and possible separation from the children. He unsheathed his sword and stared at the shining blade that reflected his solemn face.

"Hey, dad." A voice piped up from behind. Asari froze, as he had never heard the younger boy call him 'dad' before.

"… Takeshi?" He smiled. "What is it?"

"I heard from Mukuro that you're fighting tomorrow. Just wanted to see if you were in good condition and all that." Takeshi grinned – as somehow just by seeing that the boy was in a good mood put Asari in a relaxed state of mind.

"I'm great. Thank you for your concerns. I appreciate it." Asari's lips curled upward, as he placed his hand on the boy's thin shoulder. He desperately prayed that this wouldn't be the last conversation he would get to share with his son.

_~MH~ _

"BOOM!" Ryohei burst into the room, as Knuckle closed his Bible. "So, how's everything going to the extreme?"

"Going perfectly well." The priest nodded. "Just a little more praying to do, and I think I'll be fine."

"That some funny logic to the extreme. But since you're a priest, I suppose that makes sense all at the same time." Ryohei said encouragingly, as he stroked his boxing gloves in the corner. Then he paused for a while. "Hey, Knuckle." He mumbled a while. The other kids were already starting to call their adoptive 'fathers' their dads, (although they haven't even properly adopted the children yet) but Ryohei decided he could wait until everything was over. And then adjust to the family, and his new siblings… "Do you think we'll all make it out together?"

Knuckle sorted out his belongings. "I'd hope so. It'd be a shame, if one of us dies, and gets left out, dying out here – in this world. Well, this world is where you kids originate from, but there can always be a new home that differs from your actual heritage – don't you think so?"

"If you say so to the extreme." Ryohei shrugged, not putting too much thought into the priest's words.

_~MH~ _

One room was rather quieter than the others. It was the room of the two lonesome Lightning guardians – Lampo and Lambo Bovino. The little boy had yet to recover from the loss of his blood-related brother. Spanner was so precious to him, even if he remembered so little about the man. He was the only one that would remember the Bovino Famiglia until the very end – well, until he died. And now, he was dead. He was dead a little too early.

"If you're not going to sleep, I'm going to sleep first." Lampo avoided looking at the boy as much as possible. Mixed feelings were attacking his fragile mental state all at once. How were Giotto and the others accepting everything so easily? Very well, being a part of the mafia was risking your life on the line every single day of the whole freaking year. Lampo knew that.

But if he died – and really, Lampo wasn't scared of death – that wasn't the main problem of his distress – he was fearful of the pain that those would around him would have to feel because of his death. Lampo was the weakest among all the Famiglia members, if you excluded Elena. Heck, even Elena could be stronger than him in terms of willpower.

Giotto would be crestfallen. For the others, he wasn't so certain. G undoubtedly would cuss now and then muttering how stupid he was even before his death… all that. But Lambo – he couldn't manage to leave Lambo alone. He didn't really care what the little boy felt – Lampo felt like he had to protect the kid. It was his responsibility to take care of him.

"It'd be fine, you idiot." Lambo smacked him on the head as he turned the lights off. Lampo blinked. "You'll fight, and survive. Geez, you're so positive, aren't you?" The black-haired boy said with sarcasm painting all over his words. Then he snuggled into the bed, facing his back towards the older male. Lampo stared at Lambo, and then smiled (just a little bit – really, JUST A LITTLE BIT.) as he slumped down on the cushions as they came into contact with his back.

Yeah, it had to go fine.

_~MH~ _

"Wait- Mukuro, I said wait!"

"There is no need."

"Oh come on, why are we neglecting such useful and awesome technology? Like – pictures? Seriously? It comes with color, too!" Elena squealed delightfully, as Daemon sent the two kids an apologetic glance. His girlfriend got irresistibly hyper once she believed something could improve the… connection, between them and the kids.

"Please, we can take a group picture with everyone else after everything happens! Like, do you really want to take a photo before war?" Mukuro scoffed.

Elena tried to protest, but Daemon took the baton from Mukuro and continued the argument. He usually didn't go against Elena, as disagreeing with your girlfriend is almost as equivalent to starting another World War in the bedroom – but he really wasn't in as an enthusiastic mood as she was for the day. He had a battle to prepare for tomorrow – the final battle between the Arcobaleno, and the joined forces of the Vongola and Millefiore.

Chrome just watched silently from the sidelines, as she tried to coax a dejected Elena that was sitting next to her. She had always thought what it was like to have a family. Parents, siblings, relatives… considering the fact that she actually did live in a caring environment before she was captured – her real family wasn't all that bad (or from what she seemed to remember) but her memories were unclear, and all she could fully grasp was the appearance of her actual parents, and their voice.

But Daemon and Elena were real. She could touch them, hear them, see them, smell the familiar scent that they each possessed, and feel their emotions towards her and Mukuro. She was moving on from the past, and stepping into the future.

She stared at the window outside, looking at their reflection in the glass. Mukuro was conversing with Daemon, and Elena was just giggling momentarily, restoring her cheerfulness. Reaching out for the glass, Chrome felt the cold surface on her fingertips, as she covered the sight with her palm. If only, this wasn't a hallucination – another dream that was going to last for a day – then she wished she didn't see it at all in the first place.

_~MH~ _

If Lampo and Lambo were one of the quieter rooms, then this room was most definitely the _quietest_. Only silence roamed the room, as two males kept a fair distance from one another. Even after gaining the little boy's trust, Alaude couldn't find the chance to create a decent bond with him. Well, Alaude wasn't the type for close bonds and family and all that mushy shit anyway.

Kyoya flipped the pages through the novel he was reading. It was written in French, so Alaude didn't know how he was even reading it in the first place, but it was Kyoya. He always figured out a way to do things.

"… Don't lose, or I'll bite you to death." Kyoya said in a hushed voice, his tone low and warning. If you dug deep enough, then there existed a tad bit of concern, as well. Alaude glanced back at the boy, expressionless.

"Only herbivores lose battles." The platinum blonde inched closer to the boy to see what he was reading. "… Law." He muttered distastefully. Alaude possessed of no favoritism towards law and politics, albeit the fact that he was the founder of CEDEF – and even had control over the police force in Italy. However, laws and rules kept discipline, and therefore kept peace, so he found no reason to despise it, either.

"If we go back…" Kyoya started, his eyes closing. "Then teach me how to fight." His hands dropped from the book as he drooped on Alaude's lean shoulders, off to sleep. Alaude thought about putting the boy back into bed, but decided to remain in that position for a while.

Alaude wanted to savor the small warmth – just in case it would be his last time.

_~MH~ _

"Tsuna, you should go to sleep now." Giotto said, as he felt himself getting drowsier by seconds, as he gazed at the dim light that was illuminating from the lamp. The boy looked just about as exhausted as he was – it was a long day. No – it had been a long week. The first few battles and bits of skirmishes that occurred on almost a daily basis were wearing Giotto off. He was relieved that tomorrow was the final battle. But as grand as the name sounded, it was technically the battle that would determine everything. His fate, his friends' fate, everyone's fate.

He put his hand over Tsuna's forehead, feeling the soft skin of the boy on his hand. As he slowly took his hand off, he placed himself in bed, on the mattress – where he felt like he could almost instantly go to dreamland in a matter of five seconds.

The small figure that was shuffling in one place next to him had seemed to decide to latch on to Giotto's arm. The blonde-haired male just lay there, thinking about all the possible events that were capable of happening the next day. Death, and maybe even a permanent separation from the children. Something he knew for certain however, was that everything would be concluded – and the show would be over.

"Papa…" The boy beneath the sheets whispered.

"Yes?" Giotto looked downward to respond, only to realize that the boy was mumbling in his sleep. He just smiled and sunk down deeper into the pillow, putting his arm around Tsuna as he rubbed his face into the boy's brown hair.

_I'll return to my time… with everyone. _

**End of chapter.**

**Wow. That was one chapter packed with just various perspectives. I wanted show the character development and how the relationship transformed into something more of affection than suspicion and hate for all of them – even Alaude and Kyoya, for god's sake. **

**The next chapter, although I don't want to make promises about the day I might update – is going to be about the Final Battle – 'King'. Please note that this is just a simple game I had made up for the sake of the plot, and is unrelated to anything in the anime itself.**

** Mending Hearts is finally nearing its end… whew.**

**Replies:**

**SerinasHarmony – At least there was no character death in this chapter…**

**Natsu Yuuki – I'd say that technically the children are adopted, although never legally, as they haven't gone through all that long process yet.**

**Frwt – Here is your update. **

**Until whenever my next chapter will be,**

**Meiko**


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